


A Love Once Forgotten

by Basez_Dreams



Category: Supernatural RPF
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2012-01-24
Updated: 2012-01-24
Packaged: 2017-10-30 01:52:31
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 33,156
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/326453
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Basez_Dreams/pseuds/Basez_Dreams
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Back in 1996, Jared's parents made his wish come true. For his birthday they bought him tickets to see hi favourite band and meet them. But something happened that crushed Jared's teenage dream. Now, in 2008, Jared meets his co-star for his latest movie that just happens to be his old crush. Jared has never forgotten that day, so what will happen when these two are forced to work together? How will it work out?</p>
            </blockquote>





	A Love Once Forgotten

**Author's Note:**

> Dedicated to the memory of Sammyndeansgrl1.

**A Love Once Forgotten**

**_Summer, 1996_ **

**_Madison Square Garden_ **

Jared stood among the crowd, excitement flowing through his veins like a fast flowing river. It didn’t even bother him that he had to come with his mother; he was too excited about _finally_ getting to see his favourite band! It was a gift from his parents, tickets to New York to see _Driving Force_ , the hottest boy band on the planet. The only condition, as he was only 14, was that his mom had to go with him. He accepted that, clutching onto the concert tickets and meet-n-greet passes, and within moments, he was on the phone to his best friend, Grace, telling her all about it. She had been jealous, to say the least, that he would be able to see THE Jensen Ackles live and be only a matter of feet away from him.

When he had told Chad, he had teased him, calling him a fag, but Jared didn’t care. He was on cloud nine. He was going to be able to see the hottest guy he had ever laid eyes on in person.

The lights on the stage lit up and the crowd roared. Jared was probably the only boy there that was over the age of ten, but he didn’t care. He was hot for Jensen, the baddest boy of the band. Troublemaker extraordinaire, he was eighteen, and gorgeous. His voice was exceptional, his body perfect in the way that only an eighteen-year-old hard body could be.  
   
Jensen was usually everyone’s favourite. He’d been arrested a handful of times, nothing too serious, fighting, underage drinking and once for possession of marijuana. Jared’s parents were a little leery of taking him to see the band, but he had begged and pleaded…and since his mother would be there with him, they didn’t think that there would be a chance of anything bad happening.  
   
The crowd screamed as the four boys came out on the stage, dancing and singing. Jared was in heaven, his front row center tickets put him right in front of Jensen. He couldn’t be happier. Nothing could ruin this day for him. Nothing!

******

**_11 Years Later_ **

Jared woke up with a start to the overly enthusiastic chirping of his phone.  Blinking blearily, he groped for it blindly, pulling it up to his face and squinting to see the display screen. He should have guessed. Sighing, he flipped his phone opened.

“What do you want, Mike?” His friend-cum-agent had the worst habit of phoning when Jared was trying to catch up on much needed sleep.

“Is that anyway to greet the person who has the name of your co-star who has finally been cast?” Mike teased, clearly enjoying the fact that he had woken Jared yet again.

Jared instantly perked up at that. He had been chosen for a new romantic comedy _weeks_ ago and his male co-star had yet to be cast. Apparently it took all sort sorts of brain science to decide who would make the perfect best friend. “Oh, yeah? Tell me more.”

“You’re not gonna believe it when I tell you, I mean, it’s just so ridiculous...” Mike babbled into the phone, knowing exactly what he was doing.

“Christ, Mike! Every time! Just fricking tell me!” Jared exclaimed, rolling his eyes.  

“Fine. You remember that boy band, _Driving Force_?”

Jared’s mouth suddenly went dry, knowing exactly where this was going. “Jensen Ackles,” Jared breathed, his words not quite a question.

“Yeah...you know them, then?”

“Uh, yeah. Megan was a fan.”

“Sure. Megan,” Mike laughed. “Anyway, the director wants you down at the set first thing to meet and start going over the script. You got that?”

Jared shook his head slightly, pulling himself out of his light daze. “Yeah...what time?” He reached for the pen that was on the bedside table and with his phone trapped between his head and shoulder, he jotted down the time on his palm.

 _8.30._ Time to panic.

*****

The next morning rolled around far quicker than Jared would have liked. How the heck was he supposed to act around this guy, the guy who broke his dreams at the tender age of 14? The memory of the meet and greet was still fresh in his mind, and although he knew Jensen would never remember him, not in a million years, he had the desire to make him very uncomfortable.

But Jared was a professional and never had a bad word to say about anyone, even those who had hurt him. He would just suck it up, and hope that filming would run quickly and smoothly. He had heard Jensen had been trying to make it in the acting business, getting a small part on _Days of Our Lives_ , but that was a couple of years ago, and Jared really had no idea what he looked like now. For all he knew, he could’ve gained 200 pounds and lost all his hair.

Jared sighed. Somehow he didn’t think that would be the case. He was resigned to the fact that Jensen would be as hot as ever, and if his eyes happened to linger on his butt for a second too long, then so be it.

******

Jared waited nervously in the director's makeshift office, legs bouncing as he took sips from his milky, sweet coffee. He was never this nervous meeting any of his co-stars, not even when he got to work with Bruce Willis...well, maybe he had been a _little_ nervous. But the last time he had seen Jensen, the boy band star had been so rude. If he was like that now, Jared would, well, Jared wouldn’t do much. Probably just glare over his bag of Gummi Worms.

The sound of the door to the office-stroke-trailer opening hit Jared’s ears, startling him from his reverie. He didn’t turn around,  instead just waited to be addressed.

“Jared!” Jeffery Dean Morgan, the director, exclaimed, walking round to his side of the desk. “Glad you could make it!”

“Well, it wouldn’t look great if I didn’t, would it?” Jared laughed, shaking Jeff’s hand when it was offered.

“Now, I’d like you to meet your co-star, Jensen Ackles. Jensen, this, as I am sure you know, is Jared Padalecki.” Jeff gestured behind Jared, his cue for turning around.

With a silent sigh, he stood and faced Jensen. _Holy shit! He’s beautiful!_ was the first thing to come to his mind. But then he remembered that looks could be deceiving and put on his game face.

“Jared,” Jensen started, smiling warmly. “It’s good to finally meet you. I’ve seen most of your movies, and I have to say, you are an amazing actor.”

Ok, so that was unexpected. “Er, thanks. It’s good to meet you, too,” Jared smiled tightly, shaking the offered hand, ignoring the way his blood seemed to warm at the touch.

“Right,” Jeff interrupted. “I’ll just leave you two to get acquainted, but I want you to start going over lines as soon as, ok? Your other co-star won’t be here until tomorrow, so you’ve got some time to get to know the scenes better.” Jeff made to leave, but before he walked out of the door, he turned and looked at Jared. “Make sure you look after him, ok, Jared? I have a feeling this kid is gonna go a long way.” And then he was gone.

Jared glared after him, not seeing the way colour rose in Jensen’s cheeks. Ok, so he was just going to put the past behind him and _try_ to work with him. Although, he did mentally flip the bird to the Fates, who had cooked this living hell up for him.

“So, acting, huh? A little different from crooning to pre-teens.” Jared was as surprised at his words as Jensen was. He wasn’t an asshole, he really wasn’t, but it seemed that he couldn’t help himself.

“Yeah, I guess. But, this was originally what I wanted to do before the who boy band thing.” Jensen replied, somewhat awkwardly.

“I guess the band breaking up was a good thing, then. Besides, you probably would’ve lost your appeal anyway.” Oh my God, his mouth was running away from him. Someone, please shut him up!

“Yeah, right. Well, er, shall we read lines? I want to get a feel on this character before we have to start shooting.” Jensen rubbed at the back of his neck, obviously feeling uncomfortable.

Jared looked at him for a second, eyes narrowed. “Sure,” he said finally. “Let’s start with the argument scene. I kinda wanna shout at someone.”

Great. This was getting off to a fantastic start.

*******

Jensen pulled in his driveway only to see that his best friend’s car was already there. He should’ve guessed he wouldn’t be able to just sit down and relax tonight; his day had been proof of that. He walked into his house and threw his jacket on the chair and flopped down, the frown on his face was mean and pronounced.  
   
"I take it that you didn't have a good day?"  Chris said from across the room.

  
"Does it look like I had a good day?" Jensen growled.  
   
"Sorry. Don't bite my head off!"  
   
Jensen sighed. "No, I'm sorry. I -- he's such an asshole! He kept jibing at me because I was in _Driving Force_. He even made snide comments about being on ‘Days'. I had heard things that he was a cool guy - I was really looking forward to working with him, but now..."  
   
"Huh," Chris scoffed.

  
"Huh - what?"  
   
"It's just that I know a few people who have worked with him, and they all say what a great guy he is, that he's a joy to work with. Considerate, funny - always pulling practical jokes on people and stuff. Maybe he just doesn't like _you_ ," Chris shrugged.  
   
"Thanks. I feel a lot better!" Jensen groaned, head resting on the back of his couch. “I just don’t get it. What did I ever do to him?”

“Maybe, just maybe he feels...I don’t know, a little intimidated by you,” Chris suggested, reaching for the beer he had apparently taken from Jensen’s fridge.

“What the hell for?” Jensen questioned incredulously. “And besides, I don’t think that’s it. There’s another reason, and untl I can work out what that is, he’s just gonna have to get used to having me around!”

*****

“God, why is _he_ always around!!!” Jared exclaimed to himself, throwing himself into his set chair, limbs hanging down loosely. He closed his eyes and refused to look over to where Jensen was talking with Sophia Bush, the female star.

“Maybe because he’s your co-star,” a voice piped up from behind him, causing him to jump.

“Jesus!” Jared sat up with a start and turned, only to roll his eyes and sink further into the chair. “What do you want, Mike?”

“Why? Is it not ok to come and see how my client is doing?” Mike asked, gliding round to the chair beside Jared and mimicking Jared’s pose.

“If he’s human? Yes. If he’s you? No,” Jared muttered, still refusing to look at Jensen at all, except all he could do was look at him.

“Man, you’ve got it bad,” Mike commented, seeing the way Jared could not take his eyes off his co-star.

That startled Jared enough to look away and stare at Mike with a confused expression. “Got what bad, exactly?” He asked, eyes narrowing.

“You’re hot for the singer.” Mike said a matter-of-factly.

Jared eyes narrowed at Mike, but instead of glaring, he looked like a petulant child. “I do not!” he hissed, although even he didn’t believe his own words.

“Come off it, Jare!” Mike laughed, shaking his head. “You can’t stop staring at him, you glare at Sophia whenever they get ‘too close’, you listen to old songs of his...you’re head over heels, crushing on this poor guy!”

“Oh...fuck you,” Jared stood, throwing his iPod onto his chair and storming off, leaving Mike to grin triumphantly after him. Mike was about to move away himself, but then he noticed the iPod, and with a sudden thought and a calculating smirk, he picked it up and tucked it into his pocket.

It was time he lent a hand into aiding love's path.

**

_Fucking Mike. Fucking right about everything. Fucking Jensen and his fucking pretty eyes and pretty mouth and...argh!!_

Jared stomped to his trailer, slamming the door open and closed before he flung himself on the lumpy couch.

He hated that Mike was right; he just couldn’t get Jensen out of his mind. Ever since he had been introduced to him by Jeff, he could not shake the other man's image from his head. And it didn’t help that his teenage crush came rushing back to him. If he thought Jensen was pretty back then, well, he was simply fucking beautiful now.

He groaned and closed his eyes, head tipping back as he tried to chase these thoughts from his head. This was getting beyond ridiculous. He just couldn’t stop imagining what it would be like to touch and kiss his co-star. As his mind started to drift again, he reminded himself how Jensen had hurt him and crushed his teenage dreams. That caused him to crashland back to reality.

Jensen Ackles was a jackass. No need to pretend otherwise.

****

**_1996_ **

Jared stood anxiously in line, clutching his magazine poster and Sharpie as he waited for his turn to meet his favourite band. He was taller than most of the girls were, and he used his height to his advantage, peering over the heads of those in front of him. He could just about see the tops of the five member’s heads, but his gaze lingered on a certain band member.

As he got closer, his heart began to race in his chest, his palms beginning to sweat, so much so he could barely keep a firm grip on his pen.

When he was finally there, he stood in front of the young man with the blond bangs, not realising that he was about to get his heart broken.

******

Jensen smiled as he said goodbye to Sophia and headed back to the set. One of his scenes with Jared was coming up, and as he thought about the other man, the smile slowly slipped from his face. He had no idea what his problem was or what he had done to deserve the attitude from this supposedly sweet guy, but he was fast becoming sick of it.

Whilst they were doing their scenes, Jared was professional and Jensen still thought he was an amazing actor, but as soon as they ended, Jared would shut down and become closed off and cold. Jensen had decided to make it his quest to find out what exactly what the young actor's problem was.

The first place he would start would be the closest person to Jared he knew. Jared’s agent.

Little did he know just how much Mike wanted to ‘help’.

*****

The next morning, Mike was at the set before Jared had arrived and found himself alone with nothing much to do. He patted his pocket, making sure Jared’s iPod was still there. He had a feeling today was going to be a big day for both of the actors.

After scrolling through Jared’s playlist, it was easy to see that he was right on the mark where his suspicions with Jared’s feelings were concerned. That boy was so far gone, it was ridiculous. And what was even more ridiculous was what he had found out from Megan after he had phoned her last night to get a bit more information.

Under punishment of death he had promised to never let anyone know what he knew...but that didn’t mean he could give them a nudge in the right direction.

He rounded the corner and saw Jensen by himself, and opportunity shining brightly before him. He picked up his pace and grinned as he approached the other man.

“Jensen! Hi!” He saw that he had startled Jensen slightly, but couldn’t be bothered to apologise. He didn’t know how long he had until Jared turned up and he wanted to be done by then.

“Hey, Mike.” Jensen grinned as he recognised the bald headed man.

“How’s it going?” Mike asked, striking up casual conversation. “You getting on alright?”

“Yeah..fine, thanks. Listen, I wanted to ask you about Jared.”

Jensen, to Mike’s surprise, cut right to the chase. This was going to be easier than he thought. “Yeah? What about him?”

“What’s his problem?” Jensen asked bluntly, eyes wide and expectant. “I mean, what’s his problem with me?”

Mike waited a moment before he dug into his pocket and pulled out Jared’s iPod. “Listen to this and maybe you’ll get some answers. But that’s all I can say. The rest is up to Jared to tell you.” He handed the device over and gave a confused Jensen a grin before he went in search of Jared, praying he was already in make-up, otherwise it would be his ass.

Jensen looked at the iPod, not really understanding, but he took it back to his trailer and sat down, earphones in place.

******

Thankfully for Mike’s piece of mind, Jared was already in the makeup trailer, apparently waiting for the makeup girl to arrive.

Jared looked up from the magazine he was flipping through and caught Mike’s eye before he looked back down to read about the latest antics of Lindsey Lohan.

“Where’s Julie?” Mike asked as he settled down into the spare chair and picked up Jared’s half drunk coffee. He took a sip and grimaced at the cold liquid. “Ugh!” he shivered in disgust and put it down. He refused to acknowledge the smirk on Jared’s face.

Jared shrugged, turning the page. “Sick.”

“Great, so that means we’ll get some schmuck who doesn’t know what they’re doing and then you'll be late for your scene and Jeff’ll be pissed and I’ll get it in the neck.”

Jared looked on comically as the door opened and the new makeup technician heard Mike’s little tirade. Jared ducked his head as the guy cleared his throat, trying not to laugh out loud at Mike who looked very much like a deer caught in head lights.

“Sorry I’m a little late,” the man said, eyes deliberately trained on Mike. “Got caught up with Jeff.”

Jared accidently let a snigger out, and when Mike looked at him, he smiled innocently at him. “That’s ok, man. Mike, here, is just a tad impatient. Aren’t you, baldy?”

“Can it, junior,” Mike replied gruffly.

Jared narrowed his eyes in confusion at Mike’s unusual response. As he looked at his agent, he saw high spots of colour on his cheeks and he knew there was only ever two times he got them. One, when he’d been drinking, and two, when he liked someone.

Oh man, this was gonna be great!

“I’m Tom,” the new guy said, walking further into the trailer. “I hope you don’t mind having me do the makeup for you because Julie’s not gonna be back for the duration of filming.”

“Really? That sick?” Jared asked, sitting up straight as Tom came over to start working.

“Apparently so. Don’t know what it is.” Tom’s face was a picture of concentration as he worked, but Jared noticed how he would glance to Mike every so often before his eyes flicked back over.

Oh how he loved having ammunition towards Mike.

******

Jensen set the iPod down and stared at it for a while. He had no idea what that was supposed to mean, except that apparently Jared had liked or did like _Driving Force_.

His entire playlist was compiled of every album _Driving Force_ ever did, and then some. Songs he could barely remember, that were the b-sides of singles were on there, and he cringed to listen to them again, so he just flicked through them.

Jared was a complex man, it seemed, but Jensen had no idea what this had to do with him.

His eyes caught sight of the digital clock in his trailer and he realised with a solemn thought that he was late for makeup. He stuffed the iPod in his pocket, intent on giving it to Jared under the pretence that he found it.

It would be another matter if Jared believed him.

 

******

Jensen rushed to the makeup trailer, and by the time he got there, he was red with the exertion. It seemed both Jared and Sophia had already been and gone and they were just waiting on him. That’s when he noticed the new face; well, the new, but familiar face.

“Tommy? What the hell?”

“Hey! Jensen!” Tom exclaimed, walking over and pulling the shorter man into a bear hug.

Jensen returned the hug enthusiastically, smiling wide as his old friend squeezed the life from him. “What’re you doing here?” he asked when he pulled back.

“The head makeup artist, er, Julie, she got sick so they hired reinforcements in the shape of me. Luckily I’d just finished on set for some b-movie shit, and then I heard you were starring in this one, so I couldn’t turn it down. It’s been a long time.”

“Too long,” Jensen agreed. There was a sudden noise of someone clearing their throat and Jensen turned to see Mike was there, an eyebrow raised in intrigue.

“So, you two know each other?” Mike asked, trying to sound casual.

“Yeah, he was on tour with us in the last couple of years, doing makeup, obviously, but we got really close...”

“Close?” Mike asked, voice higher pitched than before. He cleared his throat in embarrassment and tried again. “Close?”

“Yeah,” Jensen started but then realised what Mike meant. “Oh, no, not like that. We’re really good friends. I like my partners a little less queeny.”

“Hey! Bitch!” Tom exclaimed, laughing, slapping Jensen on his arm.

“So you two were never....” Mike waved his hand back and forth between them.

“Like Jenny said,” Tom grinned. “Just real good friends.”

Mike smiled back, relaxing a bit more when he understood that the only history between these two was a good friendship. His eyes caught Tom’s bright blue ones, and he looked down, blushing ever so slightly. Wow, Michael Rosenbaum was slowly turning into the world’s girliest man. Who knew it would take the eyes of a tall, dark handsome stranger to do that.

******

The scene was down, at last, and all Jared wanted to do was go home and lie down with his earphones firmly planted in his ears. These scenes with Jensen were draining him. All he wanted to do was grab hold of him and kiss him until neither of them could breathe. But there was no way he could let his feelings get in the way and cloud his judgment.

He ransacked his trailer, trying to find the small device but with no avail. He tried to remember where he last had it, but could not think.

He stormed out of his trailer in search of Mike to ask if he has seen it anywhere. That was when he saw Jensen _flirting_ with the new makeup guy.

Jared’s blood ran cold as he saw the intimate touches and the lingering gazes. His heart felt like it was shattering all over again, so he turned to leave, but the stopped dead in his tracks when he heard his name being called.

“Jared! Wait up, man!” Jensen said goodbye to Tom before he rushed over to Jared. “Hey, listen, I think this is yours.”

Jared watched as Jensen dug into his pocket and pulled out his iPod. Jared, exhausted and not exactly in the right state of mind, saw red.

“You had this?” he asked his tone low and dangerous.

It seemed Jensen didn’t notice and he just smiled as he held out Jared’s iPod.

“You had this?” Jared asked evenly.

“Yeah, Mike asked me to—” He didn’t get to finish his sentence, though. Instead, Jared interrupted him, his words hitting him like a cold knife twisting in his gut.

“You stole my iPod?! What, you go to my trailer and just take it?”

“What? No...Mike, he...”

“Is that what you do? You take people’s stuff and then try to look like the good guy who finds it? I bet you listened to it, too, didn’t you?”

Well, that part Jensen couldn’t argue with.

“You’re an asshole, Ackles. You come here and make friends with everyone, and you’re already sleeping with the makeup guy like some _slut_!”

That was it, Jensen had heard enough. “Fuck you, you arrogant fucking prick!” He turned and left, leaving Jared to stare after him.

The look on Jensen's face struck a chord with him and he finally saw that he was being an asshole...he had actually hurt Jensen. And to top it off, he suddenly remembered that _he_ had left his iPod on his set chair with Mike.

God, he really was a fucking prick. Good job it was his day off tomorrow, because he had the sudden urge to get shit-faced drunk.

**

Jared placed another bill on the bar, signalling to the bartender he wanted another shot. Usually beer would be just fine, but right now, he needed something a lot harder. He had already made it clear to the burly man behind the bar that it was his intention to get plastered, and with the wad of cash he had flashed, the bar man was only too happy to oblige.

He had been there for a good hour now, and his head was swimming pleasantly enough. He just needed to erase his memory of Jensen Ackles and then everything would be fine.

But the problem was that the more he tried to forget him, the more he thought about him...and well, that meant more alcohol consumption.

He leant heavily on the bar as an image of Jensen’s eyes filtered into his mind and he called for another drink.

******

“Soph, I don’t want to go out.” Jensen pouted like a child, staring at Sophia, who was dressed to the nines. “I just want to sit here and—“

“Mope all night and think about Jared.” She finished for him, hands on her slender hips.

“I’m not going to mope _or_ think about that prick.” Jensen decidedly averted his eys from Sophia’s. She had only known him a very short while, and already she could see through him.

“Jared is not a prick,” Sophia told him sternly, only to be scoffed at. “I don’t know what is going on between the two of you, but Jared is the sweetest person I know. And I don’t care if you don’t get on, you’ll not bad mouth him, ‘k?”

“Fine.” He wouldn’t say it to her face, but he could think it still.

“C’mon. You’re coming out with me, period. I need you to ward off unwanted attention by being all over me.”

“Er, kinda not gonna happen considering, you know, I’m gay,” he told her, straight faced. He stood up none the less, and made a slow shuffle to his bedroom to get changed.

“Phftt,” she waved her hand at him. “Details. Whatever. Right, now, get a move on. The sooner you’re ready, the sooner we can go and get this party started!” She wiggled her hips and barked a laugh at Jensen’s sluggish movements.

What the hell had he let himself in for?

******




He turned slowly on his stool and saw Jensen, dressed in a shirt a certain shade of green that just made his eyes stand out, even from where Jared was. It was then he noticed he wasn’t alone. Sophia was with him, and although he adored Sophia, he couldn’t help the jealousy that boiled up inside him.

He made to turn back around but lost his balance, thus falling off the stool and sending his glass crashing to the floor. He suddenly wished the ground would just go ahead and swallow him up.

Jensen and Sophia had been in the bar for less than two minutes before something made them stop and turn around. Sophia tried to see over people’s heads to see what was going on, but Jensen used his height to his advantage. He looked towards the bar, craning his neck to see, and that’s when he saw the Jared-shaped heap on the ground.

“Shit,” Jensen breathed, not believing his insanely bad luck.

“What?” Sophia asked, noticing the look of disdain on her friend's face.

“Jared’s here.”

“What? Where?” Sophia moved around the people milling about Jared, and saw what Jensen had seen. “Man, he looks wasted.”

Jensen rolled his eyes at the concern in her voice. First, he got dragged out when he didn’t want to go anywhere, and now this? But he wasn’t the type of person to just leave someone he knew alone when they were less than competent, so he sucked up his pride and made his way over.

Jared felt himself being helped up off the floor, and with the other person’s help, he staggered to his feet.

“Jensen!” Jared exclaimed when he saw who it was that was helping him up. He smiled wide at the sight of him, but then his smile suddenly slipped and he glared. “You’re mean!”

Sophia chose that moment to approach. “Jared, what on earth are you doing? This isn’t like you.”

“Got to forget,” Jared said by way of explanation, swaying slightly, holding onto the bar for support.

“Forget?” What the hell are you talking about?!” Sophia demanded, truly bewildered. She was suddenly very worried about her friend.

“’Bout Jen’s eyes...s-such pretty eyes...” Jared trailed off, knees buckling beneath his weight.

Jensen caught hold of him and held him up right. “C’mon man, let’s get you home.” He studiously ignored Jared’s words and Sophia’s look as he helped Jared stumble outside.

“Listen,” Jensen said to Sophia once they hailed a cab. “There’s no point you coming along, too. Just tell me where he lives and I’ll take him...make sure he doesn’t choke on his own vomit.”

Sophia looked at him sceptically. “You sure? You’re not gonna do something to him are you, like...draw on his face with permanent marker?”

“I’m 28, not 12! Just go on home and I’ll see you Saturday.” The cab pulled to a stop in front of them. Jensen managed to get the door open without letting Jared slip from his grip.

“You’ll call me if you need anything?” she asked, taking a small step away.

“Yes, I’ll call. I promise.”

*****

Jensen had managed to get Jared inside the cab with little difficulty, but now he had a human octopus attached to his side. He tried to wiggle out of Jared’s grip, but the other man just followed his movements, not letting go.

“M’sorry,” Jared slurred suddenly, eyes blinking open and looking up at Jensen.

“S’ok, man,” Jensen replied, trying to smile.

“N-no,” Jared pushed himself up drunkenly so he could look at Jensen somewhat properly. “You...you’re so pretty and I can’t...can’t stop...” Jared trailed off, his drunken state enabling him to say things he never would otherwise, but hindering what he wanted to say most.

“Can’t stop what?” Jensen asked, ignoring the way he could feel blood rushing towards his face.

Instead of answering the question, Jared continued talking. “You were m’idol...my _American_ Idol...and you broke me,” Jared’s eyes slipped shut, head swimming in ways that were foreign to him.

Jensen had no idea what Jared was talking about, but he knew in Jared’s current state, he wouldn’t be able to get much sense out of him.

Jared continued to talk, with his eyes closed. “An’ I don’t like you ‘cause you _hurt_ me...you ripped my h-heart from me an’ I was only...14...”

This was getting weirder and weirder. Jensen really had no clue what Jared was talking about.

“But...” Jared’s eyes opened and he drunkenly leaned forward, crowding Jensen into the corner of the cab. “But...I’m still...” Jared’s eyes started slipping closed again, “in luf wif you.” After those words, he promptly passed out cold, sagging against a bewildered Jensen.

When the cab eventually pulled up outside Jared’s home, Jensen was relieved. If he could just get him inside safely, he could leave and try to forget about what Jared had said.

Finally, Jensen was there, and he all but threw Jared down onto the couch. He had carried him in over his shoulder, and God, did he weigh a ton! The cab driver had sped off as soon as he had been paid, leaving him to it. _Asshole._

But now that Jared was laying there, sprawled out, it was then that Jensen could see him for the young man he really was. Jared shifted in his sleep, snuffling slightly and Jensen’s felt his heart twinge, just a little.

Jared’s hair had curled and was flopping messily against his forehead and before he could help himself, Jensen was reaching out towards it, brushing it gently off his face. God, but his hair was soft. He allowed his fingers to linger for a moment, not noticing the way Jared was leaning into the touch slightly before he got up and went in search of bottled water, aspirin and a bin.

******

When Jared woke up, his head felt like it was splitting in two, and his mouth felt like it was filled with cotton wool.

He was never drinking again.

He saw aspirin and a bottle of water on the coffee table opposite him, and reach for them. He popped two pills into his mouth and drank the water down greedily.

As he slowly got off his couch and made his way to the bathroom, he wondered how he got back. He could remember getting to the bar and the first few shots and then everything became blurry until there was a black hole where his memory should have been. For a short moment he remembered seeing Jensen, but then when nothing else came, he chalked it up to being a dream.

Well, no matter how he got home, he was just glad that he hadn’t been left in a gutter somewhere.

He finished up relieving himself and was about to draw himself a nice hot bath, but then he heard his phone chirping, indicating he had a voice mail.

He staggered through the hallway back into the living room, and groped for his phone. He dialed his voicemail and was not at all shocked when he heard Mike’s voice coming through.

“You? Drinking? I hope you feel like shit,” he laughed, the message ending there.

Jared rolled his eyes and threw his phone down. _Mike must’ve brought me home,_ he thought to himself as he walked back into the bathroom. He hoped that by the time Monday came around he would feel a lot more like himself.  

********

“He said what?!” Sophia screeched, causing other patrons to look round at her in annoyed curiosity. She put her coffee down and gave Jensen her full attention.

“He told me he was sorry and that I was his idol and that I somehow broke him and that he was in love with me. Sorry, _still_ in love with me,” Jensen told her, a confused frown marring his features.

“Holy shit!” Sophia whispered loudly, barely believing her ears. “I can’t believe this! How the hell did you ‘break’ him and what’s he sorry for?”

“I don’t know and I don’t know.” Jensen took a sip of his own drink, trying to wrap his head around this turn of events. “I just, I’m gonna have to talk to Mike to see if he can shed any light on it. Oh, and I called him to let him know Jared might be out of commission for a while...”

“How do you feel about it, you know, if it’s true?” she asked tentively.

Jensen shook his head, not sure how to answer. “I honestly don’t know. I doubt it's true, though. He was probably just spouting shit because he was drunk.”

“Well,” Sophia sat up straight and pinned Jensen’s eyes with her own. “you know what they say about alcohol and the truth. It tends to make people tell it.”

“So you really think he’s in love with me?”

Sophia shrugged. “All I know is that since you’ve come into his life he hasn’t been acting like himself. But he seems to think you’ve done something to him. Can you think of anything? I mean, he said he was only 14, right? So that would make it...1996, right? And you were in that band?”

Jensen nodded, trying to wrack his brain for something, anything, but couldn’t come up with anything. “Man, this is driving me crazy! Why can’t he just tell me what I’ve supposedly done to him so I can apologise and we can—” His eyes went wide as he realised what he was saying.

Sophia leant forward, eyes suddenly that much sharper. “Wait a minute, wait a damn minute! You _like_ him? You like him?! When the hell did that happen? He’s been an asshole to you!”

“I didn’t say that I liked him,” Jensen told her sternly.

“You didn’t have to! Oh man,” she sagged back against her chair, shaking her head. “I can’t believe this.”

 _Tell me about it,_ Jensen thought.

“You really are going to have to talk to Mike and I’ll see if I can get Jared to let anything slip.”

Jensen looked at her pointedly.

“Hey, I can be discreet...when the need arises.” She chuckled. “You want another?” She gestured to the empty coffee cups.

“Sure, why not.”

“Great! Then we can think up a game plan!”

As she stood up, Jensen wondered, not for the first time, what he was getting himself into.

**

Jensen was walking onto the set, thinking about Jared. He'd been thinking about him all weekend, trying to figure out what on earth he'd been talking about...how he'd crushed him, hurt him. Jared had said he'd only been 14 years old at the time - twelve years ago. How in the hell was he supposed to remember what happened twelve years ago when he was in _Driving Force_?  
  
He'd been pretty much a trouble maker - drinking, mild drugs, a few arrests - but he didn't recall hurting a little boy's feelings.  
  
He also couldn't understand how he was so hit and miss with Jared's emotions and temper. He was outright hateful and rude at times; then, in the cab on the way home, he was spouting his love and affection. Jared was truly an enigma.  
  
Jensen looked down and kept walking toward the makeup trailer. It had been an early start on the set, and it was still dark outside. He came around the corner of the trailer and smacked right into something hard and solid. No, not something...someone.  
  
"Jared! Hi."  
  
Jared stared at him a moment, pursed his lips and muttered a hello and nodded to the door. "Not here yet."  
  
Jensen sighed and sat down on the steps. _Well this is awkward_ , he thought. "So, er, you have a good weekend?" Jensen asked by way of making conversation.

"What’s that supposed to mean?" Jared responded, his defenses automatically up. "What’s Mike said to you?"

"Nothing, God nothing, ok? I was just making small talk. Sorry I bothered." Jensen turned away from him, eyes downcast. It was obvious that Jared had been too drunk to remember and there was no way in hell he was dragging it up.

Jared sighed, feeling bad at the way Jensen was sitting dejectedly on the step. He hesitated for a moment before he sat down next to him, thighs almost touching. "Sorry...I shouldn’t have snapped. Didn’t get much sleep, you know?"

Oh yeah, Jensen knew. Jensen knew very well. "S’ok. I didn’t either. Too wired I guess."

"Yeah."

The silence that hung in the air was heavy, but not as heavy as it once was. It was then that Jensen decided to bite the bullet.

"Why are you such an asshole to me?" He winced as Jared turned to look at him, his eyes now dark and dangerous.

But Jared didn’t say anything. He just glared for a few seconds before he stood and walked away in the direction of his trailer.

Jensen gritted his teeth as he watched him go. This was getting beyond ridiculous, and frankly, enough was enough. He stood and chased after Jared, whose long legs had taken him further than he imagined.

Eventually he caught up with him, just as he was reaching his trailer. He reached out and snagged onto Jared’s jacket, forcing him to stop.

"What the-" Jared was unable to complete the sentence when Jensen reached up and grabbed the back of his head, forcing him to meet Jensen halfway as his lips smashed against his. Jared stood stunned for a moment, but soon relaxed and returned the brutal kiss full force.

Jensen had no idea what he was doing, but he kept kissing Jared until he finally came alive beneath his touch and found himself being kissed within an inch of his life. His fingers tangled in Jared’s hair as he pulled him impossibly closer, moaning as Jared moved them until Jensen's back was pressed against the side of his trailer.

Jensen’s legs were kicked wider, Jared not once letting go of his mouth, and settled himself between them. He gasped as his dick connected with Jared’s thigh, causing him to thrust forward wantonly.

"Inside," Jared gasped, still having enough awareness to know that it was not a good idea to do this outside where anyone could walk by.

Jensen nodded, barely able to hear the whispered words as blood pounded in his ears. He followed Jared inside, and as soon as the door was shut and locked, he found himself sprawled on Jared’s couch, Jared hovering above him.

"You’re a bastard," Jared whispered, eyes blazing.

Before Jensen had a chance to retort, Jared’s mouth was back on his, swiftly cutting off any words he may have had.

Jared ground his hips down into Jensen’s, pressing his hard cock against Jensen’s own, thrusting ever so slightly as he devoured Jensen’s mouth. He could feel the desperate, angry energy building in the room, and while his head was telling him that this was not a good idea, his dick was telling him to go for it.

Jensen growled at the back of his throat as Jared’s hands slipped between them and popped open his jeans, frantically pulling at the fly. He would’ve tried to help him, but his own fingers were doing the exact same thing to Jared's jeans. He bit down on Jared’s lips, extracting a sharp cry from the other man.

Jared pulled back at the sting and licked across his lip, tasting the coppery sweetness of blood. He almost snarled at Jensen, and ripped open his trousers, moving off far enough to pull them over his hips. "You prick," he said right before his mouth came crashing back down, hand firmly encasing Jensen’s erection.

Jensen cried out in surprise at the tight heat and shoved his own hand down Jared’s partially open jeans, a tight moan his reward.

They fucked each other’s fists hard and fast, not bothering with any pleasantries. Their lust for one another was all consuming; they couldn’t stop.

Jensen arched his hips up hard as Jared’s thumb ran over the slit of his dick, down to the bundle of nerves just below the head. His own hand pumped Jared’s dick hard and fast, trying desperately to make him come, his own orgasm only a breath away. His palm was slick form Jared’s leaking cock, and all of a sudden he wished that he could taste it.

Faster Jared’s hand moved, his hips pumping forward into Jensen’s fist at the same speed. His mouth broke away from Jensen’s in order to see him. Jensen’s face was flushed and his eyes blown wide and dark, only a thin rim of his iris visible around his pupil.

"Harder," Jensen commanded, his voice throaty and desperate.

Jared sped up his actions, feeling his orgasm start to spread through him like wild fire. "C’mon," he grunted. "Do it! Fucking come."

Jensen heard the words and just let go, his back arching and he thrust up once, twice, before he came all over Jared’s fist and their stomachs.

As Jensen came, his fist tightened causing Jared to lose control and spiral over the edge. Jared grunted, and buried his head in the crook of Jensen’s neck, biting down on the supple skin. He shot load after load in Jensen’s hand, staying on the high longer than he ever had.

When their orgasms finally waned, they lay there catching their breath, both not understanding what had just happened.

Jared, no matter much how much it pained him to do so, peeled himself off Jensen, not evening looking at him.

"Jared...?" Jensen queried, brow drawn down in confusion.

"Better get to make-up," Jared said, almost as if Jensen hadn’t spoken. "They’re probably there now."

Jensen nodded slowly, anger seeping in again at Jared’s behaviour. He stood and tucked himself back in. He brushed past Jared without even a word, never looking back. If he had, he would’ve seen the way Jared’s shoulders were slumped and how his eyes were filled with unshed tears.

*****

The rest of the day went from bad to worse. Their scenes together had to be done over and over again because either one or both of them kept messing up their lines or missing their cues. They both looked like shit, so much so even the lighting guy started to say something.

By the end of the day, Jeff was at the end of his tether and told them that if they didn’t get their act together for the next day, he’d make their lives a living hell.

As they headed out, they studiously avoided each other’s gaze, although all they wanted to do was go to the other and find out what was going on. It was eating them up inside in very similar ways. Both thought the other was an ass.

*****

Mike had turned up that afternoon and had felt the tension right away. He hadn’t got a chance to get Jared alone, but something intriguing did happen. Sophia had sought him out and cornered him, making him sit down and listen to what she had to say...well, more like demanded it of him.

"What the hell is Jared’s problem?" she asked, her voice kept low so as not to draw any attention to them. She was still in her ‘Lucy’ getup and looked a little uncomfortable in the mini skirt she was wearing.

"What do you mean?" Mike feigned innocence, trying to look anywhere but at her. He had known Sophia for about as long as Jared had and he already knew she could tell whenever either of them was lying.

"Don’t you lie to me Michael! You and I both know that Jared is being an ass to Jensen and it just isn’t like him. He’s a big ol’ puppy dog at heart, and frankly, I don’t like seeing him acting like this. Now tell me what you know."

Mike sighed and looked at her before looking away. "I can’t tell you, Soph. It’s up to Jared to spill the beans. Hell, he doesn’t even know that I know."

"Know what?" she asked, exasperated.

"Something...happened...when Jensen was in the band. Jared was crazy about him back then and he got to meet him, his dream come true if you can believe it. But...you’re gonna have to get the rest from Jared, ok? I can’t tell you, he’d kill me."

"And why do you care about that? Usually you’re the first one to give away any incriminating stories."

It was at that time Tom chose to walk by and Mike’s eyes followed him intently. It seemed Tom knew Mike was looking at him and he turned and winked, causing Mike to flush bright red.

Sophia saw this and sighed, knowing now why Mike wasn’t so forthcoming with the information he had. "You like Tom and you’re afraid if Jared finds out he’ll put a stop to you and Tom. Could you be any more dramatic?" she laughed, rolling her eyes.

"Hey! You don’t know. He could fire me and then where would I be! In the gutter, that’s where!" He cracked a smile, his façade splintering. "But seriously, just go talk to Jared. Or get Jensen to, because at this rate, they’re gonna kill each other."

Sophia nodded gravely, knowing the figurative truth in those words.

*****

It was times like this that Jared wished he hadn’t left his dogs back with his momma. But then again, they preferred the Texas life rather than the polluted air of the city. He felt so lonely, especially after his and Jensen’s tryst earlier that day. It had been the single best moment in his life but he had managed to fuck it up by not being able to let go of what happened twelve years ago. He really was pathetic.

He looked at his open cell phone grasped in his hand, just staring at Jensen’s number saved in there. His thumb hovered over the ‘call’ button. But then he snapped it shut, disgusted with his cowardice and threw it down.

He got up and walked over to the stereo and put it on, just needing to get lost in his thoughts for a while.

With _Driving Force_ playing softly in the back ground, Jared crawled onto his bed and under his covers, willing his heartache away.

*****

Jensen wasn’t doing much better. He was curled up on his couch, a blanket over his legs as he stared morosely at the television. It just so happened that when he had switched it on, one of Jared’s earlier films was on TBS and he didn’t have the emotional energy to change the channel.

So he sat there, events from that morning running though his mind, with an untouched bottle of beer on the coffee table.

He couldn’t stop thinking about how perfect Jared’s body fit against his, how soft his lips were, how right it felt to be with him. He just wished that it was easier; wished he knew what he had done wrong.

But there was hope. Sophia was on a mission to help him, and he knew she could wrangle the information out of both Mike and Jared that he so desperately needed. He needed to know what he could do to make this right; needed to know what he had done to make it so unbearable in the first place.

He had faith in her. He knew she would come through for him

He wouldn’t think about the possibility of it not working out, because that took him to a place he didn’t want to go.

Even though Jared had been an utter prick, Jensen had fallen for him, hook, line and sinker.

**

Jared walked onto the set. He was dreading this day more and more with every step he took. Being around Jensen after what happened yesterday was going to be the toughest thing he’d ever done.

Sex with Jensen was something that he’d dreamt about for years, even after he’d broken his heart. Even though they were pissed off at each other, it was truly awesome. But if he could rewind time and make it so that it didn’t happen, he would…because now that he’d had him, his love almost had grown triple-fold over night.

Jensen was sitting on a chair watching the crew screwing around with the cameras and listening to Jeff bitching about the sound guy. He didn’t even look up at Jared when he sat down beside him. Jared cleared his throat, not necessarily to get Jensen’s attention…but it caused him to turn his head, Jensen’s green eyes piercing into him.

"What?" Jensen asked, his tone slightly snotty.

"I cleared my throat dude. Sorry if that bothered you!" he snapped.

Jensen sighed. "You know what? I’ve had enough of your shit! What the fuck is going on with you, huh? I was all excited to work with you – kept hearing that you were a wonderful guy, ya know? Then I get here and you’re an unimaginable prick to me. Just rude as fuck, being a smart ass about me being in a boy band, about being on "Days" – then you accuse me of stealing your fucking iPod – later that night you spouted your fucking love to me in the cab when I took your drunk fucking ass home. You fucked me yesterday – and you’re STILL being a dick? What gives? Because I can’t take it anymore!"

Jared was stunned. He couldn’t move, think, breathe.

"Alright, you boys ready to get to work? I hope you got your shit together – I don’t want anymore repeats of yesterday," Jeff said smiling.

"I’m sorry. I can’t be here today," Jared said standing and walking away. "I can’t – I just have to go."

"Jared!" Jeff called out to him. "Ok, what was that about?" he asked looking at Jensen.

Jensen looked back at Jeff, but couldn’t answer him. He suddenly felt like he had just lost a battle he didn’t even know he was fighting.

*****

Mike was hovering outside the makeup trailer, wanting to go in, but not having the nerve to. Every time he would attempt to walk up the steps, he would suddenly panic and have to walk back down again. He never noticed the face in the window that was smiling at his antics.

He was up on the steps again, for the tenth time, when the door came open and he stood face to face with Tom.

"Are you going to keep doing your step aerobics, or are you going to come in and ask me out?" Tom stood there smiling widely, blue eyes shining.

"What?" Mike sputtered, his own eyes wide and unblinking.

"Ok, so I’m gonna have to do it, huh?" Tom’s smile softened at the lack of composure that Mike was showing. "Would you like to go out with me, as in, go on a date?"

Mike flushed red, blood plundering through his veins as Tom asked him what he had so desperately wanted to hear. He swallowed and nodded, a smile blossoming across his lips. "Yeah, I would."

"Good! Now, don’t freak out, but I’m going to kiss you now. Is that ok?" Tom licked his dry lips waiting for a response, suddenly wondering if he was being too forward.

Mike didn't answer vocally. Instead, he stepped closer and leaned up slightly and pressed his lips lightly against Tom’s, sighing as Tom reciprocated. It started gentle and soft, but then, as soon as Tom’s mouth opened, accepting his questing tongue, it became hard and desperate. Mike felt like his soul was on fire. He had never experienced these feelings before, especially from just a simple kiss.

Tom pulled back gently, eyes held closed just a second longer before they fluttered open. He grinned at Mike’s bruised lips, his heart fluttering in his chest as he saw the look of lust in Mike’s grey gaze. "Get in here."

Mike went to follow him inside, but suddenly Jared was there, racing past the trailer, eyes rimmed red, wet tracks down his cheeks. "Jared?"

But Jared didn’t stop, just continued going. A moment later, Sophia came rushing past, calling after him.

"What the hell is going on?" Mike called out after her.

Sophia turned her head as she kept going to call out to him. "I don’t know! Jared’s left the set!"

As Sophia ran off after Jared, Mike couldn’t help but think that this had something to do with Jensen. And something needed to be done.

******

Jared all but ran to his truck; he needed to get out of here, he needed to get home. Tears of frustration and heartbreak blurred his vision and he moved. He could here Jeff calling after him, but he was ignored. The one voice he wanted to hear wasn’t ever going to call out to him. He may as well just end it all now.

As Jensen spouted off to him, memories of his drunken night out surfaced. God, he remember Jensen being there. He remembered the ride home, what he had said. God, he was so embarrassed. He doubted if he could ever look him in the eye again. Not that he could after yesterday anyway.

He could suddenly hear a female voice calling after him and knew that it was Sophia. He didn’t want to talk to anyone, so he picked up his pace and finally reached his truck. He unlocked it with shaking fingers, cursing when he dropped them. He picked them up, but when he tried to unlock the door again, a feminine hand landed on him and plucked the keys from his weak fingers.

"C’mon, Jared," Sophia said gently, leading him away from the car. "You’re not going anywhere in this state. Lets go to your trailer and talk, ok?"

Jared nodded dumbly and allowed himself to be lead to his trailer, not even aware that people were starring and whispering. He felt completely numb.

******

As they passed Mike and Tom again, Sophia motioned that they were heading to Jared’s trailer. Mike nodded and instantly made up his mind to go and have a little word with Jensen.

"Just don’t be too hard on him, ok?" Tom suggested after Mike had told him.

"I’ll try, but I’m not promising anything."

******

Mike found Jensen in the food tent, sitting alone on one of the tables, staring off into space. Truth be told, he didn’t look much better than Jared had. But Mike didn’t let that deter him from what he was going to do.

"What the hell have you said to him?" Mike asked quietly as he sat down opposite Jensen.

Jensen looked up, startled, not having noticed Mike approach him. "What?"

"Jared. What have you said to him?"

"Why? Where is he?" Jensen asked, feeling concern sweep unwanted into his chest.

"That doesn’t matter right now, Sophia is with him. But I want to know what you’ve said to him, because I have never seen him like this before." Mike told him gently. As much as he wanted to shake Jensen and maybe punch him, at the end of the day, Jensen was frustrated and confused with Jared’s hot and cold attitude.

"Like what?" Jensen asked. "Mike, you’ve got to tell me something!"

Mike looked at Jensen for a long moment, seeing the utter hopelessness in his green depths and decided that Jensen needed to know. "He looked completely distraught. In all the years I’ve known him I’ve only ever seen him cry once and that was when Sadie, his dog, broke her leg. And yet, after seeing you, he's got tears running down his face that could rival Niagara Falls."

"He's been crying?" Jensen asked, almost to himself.

"Yeah, and that leads me back to asking what you said to him." Mike waited a moment but when he didn't get a response he pressed on. "What did you say to him, Jensen?"

Jensen took a breath before he answered." I told him I had enough, that I was excited to work with him but he's been nothing like the 'wonderful guy' he's supposed to be. And I just let it rip, you know? We slept together yesterday--"

"Wait." Mike interrupted him, eyes wide with surprise. "You slept together?"

Jensen gave Mike a look.

"Right. I'll shut up. Please continue."

"We slept together," Jensen went on, "and I thought that would change things, but it didn't. If anything, things have gotten worse and all I want to know is what I've done to him. And no matter how much of a dick he is to me, I can't help but feel about him the way I do."

"And how _do_ you feel about him?" Mike enquired, suddenly feeling bad for Jensen, even though he knew the reason why Jared was acting like he was.

Jensen looked at Mike, eyes wet with unshed tears, tears he refused to cry. "I've fallen in love with him. Don't ask me how or why. I just know that when I look at him, there's something inside me right here, you know?"

Mike nodded, thinking of Tom. "Oh yeah, I know. Listen, you really need to go and talk to him. He's in his trailer with Sophia, so if I were you, I would kick her out and just tell all this to him and get him to talk to you. Sort all this mess out so we can finally get this movie filmed, ok?"

Jensen sniffed as he stood, then wiped at his eyes. " Thanks Mike." He turned and headed out of the food tent in the direction of Jared's trailer, determination set in his features.

******

Jared sat silently for a while, thankful that Sophia wasn't pushing him to talk. She had been there, so she knew what Jensen had said, but she didn't know why it affected him so much. And Jared wished it didn't, oh God, how he wished it didn't. But it did, and it was breaking his heart knowing that he blown any chance he may have had with Jensen because he couldn't let something go that had happened twelve years ago.

"When I first heard one of _Driving Force_ 's songs, I thought they were just another stupid boy band. Like New Kids On The Block," Jared started suddenly, almost startling Sophia. "But when I saw their video, when I saw _him_ , my chest got all tight. It felt like I couldn't breathe because he was so beautiful.

I was thirteen and hadn't even figured out I was gay yet and there I was, lusting after some...some pretty boy who I had never even met."

Sophia waited for him continue, but when he didn't, she rested her hand on his knee gently, offering silent support.

"I love him, Soph," he whispered, voice cracking as he tried to keep a hold of his emotions. "I don't understand why I do, but I love him so much...I need him."

Sophia swallowed past the lump in her own throat that was formed because of the sorrow that was coming off her friend in waves. She leant forward and wrapped her arms around him, holding him tight, as he lost control of his emotions.

"C'mon Jay, it'll be ok." She told him, trying to soothe him. "Just talk to him and try and sort it out."

"No!" Jared said, pulling away from her. "I can't."

"But why? I'm sure if you spoke to him, told him, he'd understand." Sophia pressed on.

"Soph, I said no. I can't...I can't..."

"Then tell me what he did to you that was so bad!" Sophia said, suddenly beyond exasperated. "Because I'm having a hard time trying to understand your logic."

Jared shook his head. "No, you'll think I'm stupid."

"I won't. I promise. Just tell me. Whatever it is, you need to let go of it."

Jared looked at her, wanting to believe her. But he was so scared, so goddamn scared that she'd laugh in his face. And where would that leave him? Even more alone than he was now, that's where.

"Jared," she coaxed. "Tell me."

Jared bit the inside of his lip, debating what to do. Looking at her, he could see she was being sincere.

It was time to let go.

*****

Jensen's heart was racing as he reached Jared's trailer door. He felt like he was going to be sick he was so nervous. He prayed to God he would get this right, because he didn't think he could take it if this situation got anymore fucked up.

He was about to know, but then he heard Jared talking. He knew he shouldn't listen in, but he couldn't help it. It was impossible for him to resist. Quietly he moved closer, not wanting to disturb them on the other side and listened.

As Jared spoke, he felt his heart drop. Jared was telling Sophia what he himself needed to know so desperately. He listened intently and as he heard the words, a vague memory was coming back to him. The more he heard, the stronger it got.

Suddenly, he remember Jared, remember the scrawny kid standing front of him, eyes wide in wonder and stuttering so bad.

And when Jared finally spoke the reason for his behaviour, when he said aloud what Jensen had done to him, Jensen felt sick.

How could he have been so cruel?

**

** 1996 **

Jared stood there, eyes wide and unblinking as he looked upon his crush. He could barely breathe, barely get his arms to move as he handed over the glossy photo he wanted signed. As Jensen smiled, looking up at him, Jared felt his entire face fusing with blood, revelling in the pleasure caused by the older boy in front of him.

"What’s your name, kid?" Jensen asked, his voice silky smooth, the southern drawl elongating the vowels.

"J-Jared," he whispered, barely audible.

"So Jared, you like our music, huh?" Jensen asked as he scribbled an impersonal note followed by his name.

"Yeah," Jared answered, nodding his head. "I really like _Baby Stop Messin’._ "

Jensen looked up, eyebrow quirked. "You do, huh? That’s the one I sing solo."

"I know," Jared responded shyly. "You're kinda my favourite and I love your voice."

Jensen heard snickering beside him, but ignored it. "Why thank you, Jared. That’s real nice of you to say."

Before Jared could say anything else, he was jostled along the line, Jensen’s attention already turning towards the simpering sixteen year old girl behind him. But Jared didn’t care. He had spoken to Jensen and nothing could change the way he was feeling at that moment.

With his signed picture clutched to his chest, went to find his mom, feeling as though he were floating.

******

"Momma, I just need to go to the bathroom," Jared informed his mother before they were out of the backstage area. He'd been so excited about meeting _the_ Jensen Ackles that he had forgotten about his need for a restroom. Now, though, he remembered.

"Ok, honey, I’ll wait here for you."

Jared ran off in search of a toilet, in desperate need to relieve himself. Eventually he came across one and barged inside. There was an ’out of order’ sign taped above the urinals, so he made a dash for one of the stalls, hastily locking the door, setting the picture down and undoing his jeans.

Her finished taking care of business and after he picked up his picture, he was just about to step out of the stall when the bathroom door crashed open, giving way to a loud mixture of laughing and shouting. Jared froze instantly when he recognised one of the voices.

"Shut up, man!" Jared heard him say. "Like that last chick wasn’t about to dry hump your leg!"

"Whatever," another voice started. "I wasn’t the one who had that little kid batting his eyelashes at me."

Jared’s breath stopped mid-exhale, knowing exactly who they were talking about. His body went cold as he listened to them talking, his teenage heart slowly breaking.

"Fuck you," Jared heard Jensen growl. "I ain’t into fags."

"Oh yeah? You sure about that?" another voice questioned.

"Pretty goddamn sure. And besides, if I did swing that way, I would sure as hell get someone who wasn't a damn stupid kid with stars in his eyes and definitely not as scrawny. Kid looked too damn boney."

"You’re sure giving this a lot of though, Jenny," the first one piped up. "I’m sure if you asked him real nice he would suck your cock for you."

"Fuck you! I told you, I’m not into homos, ok? The guy was a fucking queer with a boner for me, so what? I don’t give a shit and it’s not like I’m ever gonna see him again. He came and got his stupid autograph and that’s that. End of."

Jared stopped listening, his entire being turning cold. His fingers were numb as they slowly unfurled from the light grasp on what was his most prized possession for all of 20 minutes, leaving it to flutter uselessly to the floor.

As he made his way back to where his mother was waiting for him, he pasted a smile on his face and pretended that his heart wasn’t broken.

*****

_Present Day_

Jensen made a snap decision, feeling the overwhelming need to see Jared and explain to him that he was just a kid when he said those awful things. He waited until Jared had finished talking before he opened the door, not bothering to announce his arrival first.

He was immediately saddened by the look of lost hope on Jared’s face and knew that in order to talk to him properly, to try and get his forgiveness, Sophia was going to have to not be there.

"Jensen! What the fuck?" Jared cried, surprised at the other man’s arrival.

"Soph, can you leave us alone for a while?" Jensen asked, ignoring Jared for the moment. "We need to talk."

"Sure, Jensen," Sophia replied some what slowly as she stood. She looked at Jared and saw the seething look on his face and hoped they could work this out.

As soon as she was gone, Jensen locked the door and turned back to Jared. He opened his mouth to start talking, but Jared got there first.

"You came to shout at me some more?" he asked, eyes looking anywhere but at Jensen. "Or did you come to listen in on the conversation and then laugh at me about it?"

"For God’s sake Jared, just shut up, ok?" Jensen said, exasperated.

Jared’s eyes shot to Jensen’s and he clenched his teeth. "Fine."

"I heard why you’re so angry with me…why couldn’t you just come to me and talk to me about it instead of pissing me off and everyone who is within 2 feet of you? I just don’t understand."

"Well maybe I thought that if I ever told you my reason you’d laugh at me some more and…and…"

"And what?" Jensen asked, coming over to sit next to Jared. "I can actually remember you, you know? I didn’t at first but when I heard you talking, it kinda came back to me. You were so adorable, all flushed and excited to meet me."

"Yeah, well, I freaking idolised you, man." Jared muttered.

"And I was a real asshole, I know." Jensen took a breath, running the fingers of his right hand through his hair before he continued. "Back then, I wasn’t comfortable with who I was. Hell, I was doing mild drugs just to not think about that I was gay and in a boy band. I mean, how cliché is that? And those guys, they had no idea, and yet they kept spouting shit like that and I just had to throw them off. I didn’t mean a goddamn word I said and I am so sorry for hurting you like that, but you gotta understand why I _did_ say them."

"Yeah, I understand," Jared replied, listening intently. "I understand that you were too God damned chicken shit to tell those guys to fuck off and to stick up for some poor kid who was head over heels for you. It wouldn’t have mattered if you were gay or not, but you still just made fun of me."

Jensen rubbed tiredly at his face. He knew this was going to be hard, but the lump that had formed in his throat at Jared’s words were so far beyond the simple apologetic feelings he felt. " I know and I’m sorry, ok? I was just a kid and an idiot at that, I know. But you can’t tell me that you’ve never said and done anything because you were scared that the people closest to you at the time would turn their backs on you."

"I can honestly say I never have." Jared told him firmly, fingers fidgeting, itching to reach out and grasp a hold of Jensen’s.

"What, never?"

"Never." Jared repeated. "I have always been honest with who I am and even if I don’t go out and broadcast it, I still won’t deny it." Jared shrugged. "It’s who I am and I’m not ashamed."

"And neither am I," Jensen told him, turning to face him and tentively moving closer. "Not anymore. Over the years I’ve done so much growing up and once the band broke up I was free and I was able to be who I wanted to be and do what I wanted to do. I didn’t have to listen about image or whatever the fuck else they shoved down my neck."

"So, you’re telling me that because of the constraints they put on you and because of your image, that’s why you said those things…but you didn’t mean them?" Jared asked to clarify. His palms were sweating, this turn of events doing nothing to quell the storm of raging emotions inside him.

"Yes, that is what I’m saying and no I didn’t mean them. But if you don’t want to believe me, then that’s your choice. I can’t do anything else." When Jared didn’t respond to him, Jensen’s heart dropped. There was nothing else he could do. With a sigh, he stood up, but when he went to walk away, a hand clasped around his wrist, preventing him from going anywhere.

Jared took his time in looking up, but when he did, Jensen could see that his eyes were softer, no longer sheathed in barely contained anger. "I…I’m sorry too," Jared finally said. "I’ve been such an asshole to you, and yeah, maybe I should have let this go a long time ago, but I couldn’t. I hadn’t thought about it for years, but when I heard you were going to be working on this film with me, it all came back. And I was scared and nervous as hell, because what if you still thought those things about me? What if you were still that asshole who said all that stuff…but you weren’t and to tell you the truth, that threw me for a loop. I had no idea how to act around you, so I just did the first thing that came to mind."

Jensen sat back down, this time so close to Jared that their thighs were touching. "I can’t blame you for that. And I forgive you." Jensen smiled slightly, his chest feeling a little lighter.

"For what it’s worth, I forgive you too," Jared said, returning the smile.

"So, what now?" Jensen asked.

Jared shrugged. "I don’t know," he replied honestly.

"Well, I’m just going to continue down this route for a second, if that’s ok. I have some other stuff I want to say before you decide what you want to do."

Jared looked at Jensen in amused confusion but didn’t say anything, allowing him to continue.

"Even though we haven’t had the best of starts, there was just something about you and despite our, er, disagreements, I’ve fallen for you. So goddamn hard that it’s been killing me." Jensen could barely hear his heart was pounding so hard; he hoped he didn’t miss what Jared was going to say. But then again, if it was bad, he wouldn’t want to hear it.

"You’ve fallen for me?" Jared wasn’t quite sure he had heard correctly. Yeah, they had fooled around together and Jensen was the one to make the first move, but Jared hadn’t really thought that it had meant more than it had been.

"Yeah, and I know this may not be the best time to say anything, but I do and I wanted to mmmph..." Jensen’s words were cut off by Jared’s lips, the reverse of their first kiss. He remained still for point zero of a second before his hands came up to cup Jared’s face, forcing the kiss to be deeper.

Jared groaned deep in his chest, eyes closed tight as Jensen took charge of the kiss, sending his mind spinning. Their tongues slid together, entwining passionately, as hands grasped and clutched at each other's hair and clothes.

They broke apart panting, foreheads resting against each other as they fought to get their breath back. Jensen leaned back slightly and smiled. "I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of kissing you."

Jared blushed, laughing slightly. "I think I can say the same for you." He lifted his fingers up and gently slid them across Jensen’s lips. "Your lips are so perfect."

This time, it was Jensen who flushed red, nose screwing up as he looked away. "Shut up!" he said playfully.

"Never. And, what you said before? Well, I feel the same…for twelve years now." Jared chuckled, maybe a little uncomfortably, but when Jensen cupped his cheek, eyes filled with apology, he felt everything since that night melt away, making him feel better than he had in years.

"So, you want to go out with me sometime?" Jensen asked, grinning cheekily.

"You’re asking me out? On a date?" Jared laughed.

"Yes, I most certainly am." Jensen said. "So, how about tonight? You busy?"

"How about right now? Jeff already thinks I’m gone so if we’re quick we can go and get some lunch or something before anyone has to know we’re still here." Jared suggested.

"I like your thinking." Jensen grinned and leaned into kiss him again. Jared sighed against his lips and let himself be kissed for a moment.

"C’mon, we better go," Jared told Jensen as he stood, pulling him up as well. " I don’t fancy our chances if Jeff catches us."

Jensen laughed and followed him outside, hands entwined together.

Neither of them saw Mike, Tom and Sophia all peering round the corner each doing their own form of celebration. Well, Mike and Tom’s was more of a double act and Sophia didn’t mind watching one little bit.

**

It had been three days since Jared and Jensen's first date, which had gone surprisingly well. They'd enjoyed lunch together, and then went for a long walk through the city, window shopping and talking.  
  
They were surprised to find that they had a lot in common...movies, music (except that Jensen didn't really like Driving Force), they both loved animals, were big on family and even had some mutual friends.  
  
The filming had been wrapped up for the weekend and Jensen found Jared in the makeup trailer down on his hands and knees. His head was just under the counter when Jensen walked in.

"What are you doing?"  
  
Jared bolted upright and smacked his head on the counter. "God DAMN it!" he groaned falling back on his ass. "You scared the shit outta me!"  
  
Jensen laughed. "Sorry, I thought you heard me come in. What are you looking for?"  
  
"I lost my iPod again."  
  
"I'll buy you a new one, you ready?"  
  
Jared laughed, and got to his feet. "Yeah, I'll just look for it later. Where are you taking me?" Jared smirked as he leaned against Jensen's body, his hands coming to rest on his hips. "You could always take me back to your place and have your way with me."  
  
"Jay...I told you, I know that we already...that we have..."  
  
"Fucked?"  
  
Jensen cringed. "Crass much? But yeah. But it wasn't good. I mean it was good, the coming part...but the acutal event was fast, angry and just stupid. I wanna get to know you. Okay?"  
  
Jared sighed. "Yeah, I suppose that I can be a good boy. Or at least try."  
  
"Thanks," Jensen smiled at him and kissed his lips quickly. "Now, I'm taking you to dinner and a movie...well, three movies. They're having Star Wars night at the theatre down the road from my house...you up for that?"  
  
"Hell yeah - I love Star Wars!!"

"Cool, but you’re driving."  
  
*****

By the time they got out of the movie theatre, they were exhausted. Jared moved sluggishly to his truck as Jensen hopped into the passenger seat. As Jared started the engine, he yawned, causing Jensen to laugh at the sound that was coming out of his mouth.

"You’re adorable when you’re sleepy, you know that?"

Jared turned and looked at Jensen, poking his tongue out.

"Don’t poke it out unless you intend to use it," Jensen grinned innocently, but the regretted his words as Jared’s gaze turned to a leer.

"Oh, I intend you use it alright. As soon as you’re ready, I’m gonna make you come using just my tongue." Jared laughed as blood filled Jensen’s cheeks and his eyes darkened with lust.

"You’re evil," Jensen complained, shifting discreetly in his seat.

"So I’ve been told."

When they pulled up in front of Jensen’s place, they sat in a comfortable silence for a while.

"I had a good time tonight," Jared said finally, shifting in his seat to face Jensen.

"Me too," Jensen replied, smiling. The smile deepened when Jared leaned across the seat, cupping Jensen’s face gently in his hand.

Jared leaned in and pressed his lips softly against Jensen’s, nothing fast or demanding about it, just a leisurely sign of affection.

"I’ll see you tomorrow?" Jared whispered as he pulled back slightly.

"Yeah," Jensen replied, not making an effort to move away. Instead, he leaned back in, dragging Jared’s head back down toward his. He was right in what he said a few days ago, he really couldn’t get enough of Jared’s kisses.

"God," Jared groaned, forcing himself to pull away and sit back. "You drive me crazy."

Jensen bit his lip, wanting nothing more than to invite Jared in, but he couldn’t. He had to stick to what he felt. He wanted to get to know Jared better and couldn’t let lust prevail.

"I’ll see you tomorrow," he said lightly, popping the door open. He leaned in and gave Jared a quick kiss, then climbed out and headed up to his house, not looking back, because he knew that if he did, he would head right back to the car and demand Jared come in with him.

Jared waited several minutes after Jensen was inside before he headed off home, his intent to take a cold shower to try and stave off his overactive libido.

******

"CUT!" Jeff shouted, eyes sparkling with almost insane genius.

Jared and Jensen both relaxed, shaking off their characters for a moment. They smiled at each other briefly as they headed off the set, each intent on their own desired snack.

"I don’t know what the hell has happened with you two," Jeff said as he approached them, "but at this moment I don’t care. That is the best I have seen you two together; your goddamn chemistry is off the fucking charts!" Jeff laughed, clapping them both on the back.

"Let’s just say we had a chance to talk," Jared told him, winking over Jeff’s head at Jensen who in turn smiled back.

"Talk, yeah," Jeff laughed. "Just make sure you keep talking then, because at this rate, this is going to be my best move to date!" Jeff wandered off, yelling instructions to the lighting crew, wanting to get ready for the next shot.

"You hear that?" Jared asked as he slid up beside Jensen. "Our chemistry is off the charts."

Jensen laughed, nudging Jared with his hip. "That it is, baby."

"So, you wanna hang out when we’re done here?"

"Sure, what you got in mind?"

"I was thinking about asking Sophia, Mike and Tom if they wanna come over for some food. You up for that?"

Jensen nodded. "Sure," he responded, although he had been hoping Jared was going to suggest just hanging out together. Alone.

******

"Remind me why I ever invited these assholes round here," Jared said, leaning against the sink in his kitchen, finally getting away from his friends and Jensen’s friends. He had suggested that Jensen invite Chris and Steve, but now, with those two all but fucking in the front room, he was beginning to regret it.

Jensen shrugged, feeling no sympathy for him. "Don’t ask me. I just wanted a quiet evening with you." Jensen picked at the label on his beer bottle, avoiding Jared’s gaze.

"You did?" Jared asked, suddenly feeling like the worlds biggest idiot. "Then why didn't you say so?"

  
"I thought maybe you didn't. Not a big deal, I know you like me, so I'm not being insecure - it's just..."

Before Jensen had a chance to finish, Sophia came into the kitchen, grabbing on to both their arms and dragging them forward.

"C’mon, I’m bored and I really don’t think you’d appreciate Chris and Steve getting jiggy on your sofa." Sophia managed the pull the reluctant bodies back into the lounge. Once there, she let go and addressed the room. "Ok, guys, spin the bottle!!!"

There were simultaneous groans and cheers, the couple on the couch finally pulling apart.

"Right, get in a circle," Sophia commanded. She waited until everyone was settled, each with their drinks and placed the bottle in the middle. "The rules are, when the bottle lands on someone, you have to kiss them, if it lands on them a second time, you have to kiss with tongue. Third time, a dare from the ‘dare hat’. I have taken the liberty to make up the dares already." She gestured at one of Jared’s old baseball hats with screwed up bits of paper inside.

Jared looked over at Jensen as they all got ready to play, but the other man seemed to be purposely looking away from him.

"Ok, I’ll go first," Sophia said, reaching out and spinning the bottle. It finally settled on Mike, who puckered up comically and allowed Sophia to give him a small kiss.

The game continued for a while, the friends getting drunker by the moment. No one had reached the ‘dare hat’ yet, but they were content with hooting and hollering at each other. Eventually, though, they were beginning to get bored, so they decided to change to ‘truth or dare’.

"Dude, you gotta take the shot! I dared you to!" Jared laughed gleefully over at Chris as he looked quizzically at the green substance in the shot glass.

"I lied, I pick truth," Chris griped while his boyfriend laughed at him. "As soon as this shit is swallowed I’m gonna kiss you and make you taste it!"

"Bring it on, baby," Steve challenged him, grinning widely. A moment later, Chris had downed the shot and followed through on the threat. He pulled away, both of their faces flushed, each not tasting the vile liquid.

"Can we leave?" Chris asked, panting, eyes blown wide from arousal and alcohol. He was struck on the back of his head by a pillow and he turned round to glare at the culprit.

"You are not leaving!" Mike told him. "It’s your turn to spin the bottle!" He clapped his hands in glee, bouncing in his seat.

Chris rolled his eyes at his drunk friend, not that he was less drunk himself. He went ahead and spun the bottle. It whizzed round on the carpeted floor, coming to a halt on Steve. "Truth or dare?"

Steve mulled it over for a second, taking a swig of his beer before he answered. "Truth!"

Chris grinned evilly, a question immediately springing to mind. "On my last birthday, what did you dress up as?"

Steve’s eyes went as wide as saucers in barely concealed shock. "You asshole!" he shouted, smacking Chris on the back of his head.

"C’mon Steve, what was it!?" Jensen asked, amused. Truth was, he already knew, but he enjoyed the way his friend was squirming.

"You can shut up," Steve said, glaring at Jensen. " And you," he said pointing to Chris, "are cut off. For a month."

"What the hell did you dress up as?" Tom asked impatiently, leaning against Mike, head propped on his shoulder.

"Aschgrl." Steve mumbled.

"What was that?" Mike asked, hand cupped to his ear.

"A school girl. Ok? Now you can all laugh."

The room was silent for a moment before they all burst out laughing, and Steve just sat there glaring at Chris.

As the room quieted down, Jared spoke up to move the game along. "C’mon, you guys! It’s Britney’s turn to spin!" Jared laughed, eyes glimmering in the low light.

"Haha!" Steve said sarcastically, but spun it none the less. It landed on Jensen. "Truth or dare?"

"Dare." Jensen asked after a moment's hesitation, alcohol fuelling his decision.

Steve smirked slightly just before he opened his mouth. "I dare you to make out with Mike."

There was hooting and hollering once again, but not from respective partners or Jensen. Mike, on the other hand, lapped it up.

"C’mon Jenny boy, pucker up." He didn’t seemed to notice the look of jealousy on his new boyfriend's face, or the way Jared looked like a kicked puppy.

Jensen sighed, only briefly looking over at Jared, but saw the look of pure jealousy in his eyes. That he could work with. He waited until Mike crawled over and then initiated the dare. Mike wasn’t a bad kisser by any means, but when he raised his hand to hold onto the back of his neck and his fingers met skin, not hair, he realised that he would never be able to kiss anyone other than Jared ever again.

With that revelation, Jensen pulled away, blushing as the noise of cheering filled his ears. He went to reach out for Jared, but was met with an empty space, he saw that Jared was no longer there.

"He, er, went outside," Sophia told him.

"Thanks," he said before he got up and followed in Jared’s direction. He glanced behind him to see that Tom was crowding Mike’s space possessively, letting the other man know how jealous he was.

Jensen stepped out into the cool night air and saw Jared standing on the back porch, leaning on the rail and looking out over his garden. He went and stood next to him, standing as close as he could get without actually touching him. "You ok?" he asked uncertainly.

Jared took a deep breath before he answered. "I can’t take seeing that," he eventually said.

"Seeing what? Me and Mike? I tell ya, you ain’t ever gonna see that again," Jensen chuckled, trying to lighten the mood.

"Seeing you kissing someone who isn’t me." Jared turned his head and faced Jensen, eyes searching his face. "I love Mike like a brother, but all I wanted to do was pull him off you and mark you as mine."

Jensen warmed inside at the words and Jared’s sudden possessiveness. "You can, you know. Mark me as yours? You can because I don’t want to be anyone else’s. While we were kissing, I suddenly knew that I couldn’t do that with anyone else, that you will be the only one I kiss for the rest of my life."

"So you’re saying that you want to be exclusive?" Jared questioned.

Jensen nodded, turning fully to face Jared as he did the same. He reached out and placed both his hands on Jared’s hips. "Yeah, I do. I don’t want there to be anyone else. I just want you."

Jared smiled a little as he inched forward. "Me too."

"Good. Now, are you going to kiss me or what?"

Jared laughed and ducked his head to meet Jensen’s half way. They kissed under the stars, shrouded in moonlight, the moment so magical and perfect that nothing could have forced them apart.

**

"How much did we drink last night?" Jared groaned from his seat in the makeup trailer. Tom seemed far too clear-minded as he applied the makeup to Jared’s unusually pale cheeks.

"Christ knows," Jensen replied from his position on the short couch. "But I’m blaming you."

"Why me?" Jared asked, indignant.

"Because it was your idea to invite everyone round, that’s why. I just wanted to spend a nice quiet evening in with you."

"Well, next time, tell me before I end up making stupid decisions."

Tom laughed quietly at the pair as he continued his works. "Good job the scene this morning is a hang-over scene, huh?" He piped up. "Not much acting to be done."

"Fuck off," Jensen grumbled. "How come you’re so chirpy, anyway?"

"I downed a bottle of water before bed, and then Mike fucked me into the mattress."

Jared groaned, the image doing nothing for his churning stomach. "That was far more than I needed to know."

"You asked."

"No, that would be my brainless boyfriend over there."

Jensen didn’t respond, just lifted his hand half-heartedly and flipped Jared the bird.

A knock on the trailer door suddenly interrupted them from any further bickering and one of the crew poked their head in. "Five minutes, guys."

They groaned again, both wishing that this day was over with already.

*****

Jensen laid stretched out on the sofa on set, bare feet sticking out the end of the blanket that was covering his body. He listened to Jared say his lines and replied in kind until Jeff yelled ‘cut’, signalling them to go for a break.

Jensen was practically gasping for a drink, so he slipped off the couch and headed over to the drinks table, neglecting to put on anything on his feet. He was laughing as he watched Jared fooling around, eyes not on where he was stepping. As he stepped over different types of cables, he didn’t notice the damaged casing on one of them, exposing the wires underneath.

Jared continued to cut up as Jensen watched him, his chest warming that he was putting that smile on his new boyfriend's face. But he froze, his entire body going cold as there was a defining bang just before Jensen was lifted clean off the ground and thrown several feet backwards.

Jared couldn’t comprehend what had just happened, but suddenly there was a flurry of movement, horrified cries bringing him out of his stupor. He bolted to Jensen, who was lying motionless on the ground, but everything seemed to be moving in slow motion. By the time he fell to his knees beside Jensen, it felt like hours had passed.

"Jen?!" Jared cried desperately, patting his face, trying to bring him round, but to his horror, he noticed he wasn’t breathing. "Call an ambulance! He’s not breathing!"

He could hear panicked shrieks behind him, but paid them no mind. He searched his mind for the first aid training he did long before his career started, and tipped Jensen’s head back, two fingers pressing against his pulse, trying to detect a beat. There was one, but it was very weak, and if Jared didn’t hurry, he would lose him.

His mind now clear of everything except what he had to do, he pressed his hand firmly in the center of Jensen's chest, his other hand on top - his fingers laced tightly together and he pressed, counting outloud.  
  
"One, two, three, four, five..." he tilted Jensen's head back and pinched his nose and blew three breaths into his mouth, watching his chest expand as he did it. Then he repeated the procedure.  
  
"Come on baby, don't you leave me!" Jared said as he was back to chest compressions. "You hear me Jensen, don't you fucking dare do this to me!" He kept on working on Jensen as a small crowd began to gather around them.  
  
Jeff started shouting for everyone to back away and give him room, making most people leave the set.  
  
"It's not working!!" Jared sobbed, but not stopping. Jared felt a snap inside Jensen's body. "Oh God, I think I broke one of his ribs!"  
  
Tom kneeled down. "You're doing good Jared. Keep it up, keep breathing for him until they get here, ok?"  
  
Jared nodded and had just leaned his head back down and began the three breaths when the paramedics barrelled through the door.  
  
One of the paramedics took over for Jared, the other started getting out the supplies to intubate. "What happened?"  
  
"I don't know, there was this noise..." Jared started.  
  
"He was electrocuted, there's an exposed wire over by the...."  
  
" _Exposed wire_?" Jared growled, eyes blazing savagely as he swung round to look at the crewmember who had spoken.

"Jared, I can assure you I didn’t know the cables were in that poor of a condition," Jeff spoke up, directing Jared’s attention away from the cowering man.

"It’s not me you’ve got to ‘assure’," Jared spat, barely able to feel anything but anger and fear. "You better hope that Jensen doesn’t die because I will fucking kill the fucker who didn’t do their job properly."

The paramedics rushed Jensen to the ambulance and Tom placed himself between Jared and Jeff. "Get in the ambulance and go with him. Jeff’ll call his parents and I’ll get Mike and Sophia and meet you at the hospital, ok?"

Jared nodded dumbly, rushing out after them and got into the ambulance just before the door slammed shut and it sped off, sirens blaring.

He couldn’t understand a thing the paramedics were saying, all Jared could do was focus on was Jensen. He looked dead, and that chilled him to his very core. He had never been as scared as he was in that moment; he had never been so close to losing the one thing he valued more than his own life.

*******

At the hospital, Jared was instructed to wait in the ‘family room’, and was left alone. He was in a state of shock and didn’t notice anyone else was there until he felt a hand land on his shoulder. He looked up and saw Mike standing there, brow furrowed in concern.

"Jared…man…have they been in to tell you anything yet?" Mike asked, concerned by the almost vacant look in Jared’s eyes.

Jared shook his head, and looked back down at his hand, unable to voice an answer vocally.

"How the fuck did this happen?" Sophia spoke, her voice strangled with tears.

Tom looked at Jared, waiting to see if he would answer, but when he just remained staring at nothing, he answered for him. "Jen trod on an exposed wire. Everyone is playing ignorant about it."

"Motherfuckers! I swear to God…" Sophia shook as tears pooled in her eyes again, her teeth clenched in anger.

Mike sat down next to Jared, eyes full of concern. This wasn’t right, Jared wasn’t saying anything, he was barely moving, he didn’t even seem to be reacting. Mike glanced at Tom worriedly, seeing the same concern mirrored in his boyfriend's eyes.

"Jared?" Tom tried to get his attention, sitting down on the other side of him. "Jared…c’mon man, say something."

Jared still sat there, gazing off into space, but a lone tear slipped down his cheek and splashed onto his hand. "I-I c-can’t…" Another tear spilled onto his hand, then another, but it seemed Jared was unaware that he was crying.

*****

Time passed slowly. The room was still in the suffocating silence, and Jared was still barely functioning. There was a sudden knock on the door before a doctor entered, his lined face serious and grave. "I’m Dr. McQueen. You are here for Jensen Ackles?" he asked.

"Yeah," Mike said, standing. "Is he going to be ok?"

"Are his parents here yet?" Dr. McQueen asked, ignoring Mike’s question.

"No," Tom said. "Someone‘s been trying to get hold of them but they‘re in Paris. Jensen’s partner's here, though," Tom gestured to Jared.

"Right, well, Jensen’s in very serious condition. His foot his has second degree burns on the sole and he’s suffering respiratory difficulty. We’ve got him intubated right now, as he can’t breath on his own. Luckily he didn’t suffer any damage to his heart, but his head suffered a bad blow. Right now all we can do is monitor his condition and wait."

"S-something cracked," Jared spoke up, looking at the doctor, his face pale and drawn. "When I was giving CPR…something cracked…I-I think…I br-broke something."

Dr. McQueen smiled slightly. "Don’t worry son, his rib is only fractured. You did the right thing. If it wasn’t for you, he wouldn’t be here."

"Can we see him?" Sophia asked, sniffing.

"Not yet. I’ll let you know as soon as you can, and it can only be one at a time. I’ll be keeping a close eye on him so I’ll let you know if there is any change."

"Thank you," Tom said, and Dr. McQueen nodded before he left, leaving the four friends to take in the news.

"I want to see him," Jared whispered, looking up at Mike, his eyes wide and unblinking. "Why can’t I see him? I need to…I need to…" Jared started sobbing, tears falling from his eyes faster than before, the events obviously now sinking in.

"Fuck, Jay," Mike pulled him to him, and held onto him as sobs wracked his body, making him tremble uncontrollably. Mike looked over at Tom, who offered him a weak smile. Jensen needed to make it, because if he didn’t, neither would Jared.

******

Another few hours passed and there had been no change in Jensen’s condition. Jeff, Chris and Steve had turned up, but Jared was too distraught to say anything to them. Dr. McQueen had yet to come back, and Jared was beginning to really start thinking out that something had gone wrong. But he didn’t say anything to anyone, he just sat with Mike by his side, slowly going crazy.

"Why the fuck haven’t we heard anything?" Chris suddenly exclaimed in the quiet room.

"Babe, calm down," Steve soothed, putting his arm around his shoulder, only to have it shaken off.

"Calm down? How can I calm down when my best friend is in there fighting for his life?"

"Don’t Chris," Sophia whispered loud enough for them to hear.

"Don’t what? Don’t care? At least I’m showing some sort of emotion!" Chris shouted, taking his frustration and fear out on the easiest target.

"Well I’m sorry if I don’t get up and start shouting at everyone," Jared spoke quietly from his seat. "But I’m too busy trying to be strong for Jensen and not crumble. Because all I really want to do now is shout and scream about why this had to happen to him, but I can’t. So Just. Back. Off."

Dr. McQueen interrupted whatever was going to come out of Chris’s mouth next. "Jensen’s still in the ICU, but he’s comfortable for now."

"Am I able to see him?" Jared asked, his eyes pleading with the Doctor.

Dr. McQueen nodded. "Yes, but only for a short while and no more than one person at a time, ok? Right, I’ll take you to his room now."

Jared stood and followed Dr. McQueen down the corridor, through a pair of double doors and to Jensen’s room. He looked through the door window and his knees almost gave out from underneath him. Jensen looked nothing like the man he was that morning. Now he looked small and frail and so goddamn sick.

Jared entered the room and walked over to the chair that was placed beside the bed. He sat down and immediately grasped a hold of Jensen’s hand, clutching it tightly. He swallowed past the lump in his throat, trying to keep hold of his emotions, but it was hard. Just looking at Jensen with a tube down his throat, hooked up to so many machines, made him want to break down and cry.

"God," Jared choked out, sniffing. "Please don’t leave me. I’ve only just found you again, and…and I can’t live without you…" Jared lifted Jensen’s hands to his lips, just pressing it against them. "Please…I love you." he closed his eyes and allowed tears to seep from behind his lids, succumbing to his grief.

Only moments later alarms started to sound causing Jared to jerk up, the noise making him jump. A second later and Dr. McQueen was flying into the room followed by three other people.

"What’s going on?" Jared shouted as they started working on Jensen, pushing him away.

"Get him out of here!" Dr. McQueen called and almost instantly Jared was being pulled out of the room by a male nurse.

"What’s happening? What’s going on?" Jared struggled against the man, trying desperately to get back to his boyfriend. "Jensen! No, Jensen, no!! Please!! Let me in there, let me through!!!"

But Jared was pushed from the room, the door slamming shut in his face and all he could do was watch through the window, feeling as though his world was being ripped away from him.

**

Jared stumbled back to the waiting room and all but fell through the door. Luckily, Jeff was standing there, and caught the broken man as sobs wracked his body. He couldn’t control himself, acting like a rag doll as Jeff guided him to a seat, helping him sit down.

"Jared, what’s happened?" Mike tried to get through to Jared amidst his sobbing, but it was as if Jared couldn’t hear him.

"Jared, what the hell is going on?!" Chris demanded, going for a more hands on approach. He crouched in front of his friend and shook him, trying to snap him into coherency.

"Chris, stop that!" Sophia cried, pulling him away. "Can’t you see you’re not helping?!"

"Well what the _fuck_ do you expect me to do?!" Chris stood and whirled round to look at her. "God knows what's happening to Jensen right now and the only person who can tell us is almost catatonic!"

"Don’t shout at me!" Sophia wailed, tears falling from her eyes, makeup long since worn away. "This isn’t my fault!"

Chris recognised that he shouldn’t be taking his fears out on his friend and softened slightly. "I’m sorry, Soph. I’m just so goddamned scared."

While the argument had been going on, Tom and Mike had both turned to Jared and were talking to him, trying to get him to calm down enough to tell them what was going on.

"C’mon, Jared, we need to know. Is Jensen ok?" Tom asked quietly. The slight shake of Jared’s head caused new feelings of fear to blossom. "What’s happened."

"I-I d-don’t know," Jared sobbed, trying to control his heaving breath. "He’s h-hooked up t-to so many m-machines and…and they started fr-freaking out. I w-was forced to leave and-and J-Jen could be dead."

"Oh God," Chris whispered as he sank into a chair. He buried his head into his hands as his own tears took over and Steve did all he could to comfort his lover.

"He’ll be alright," Mike tried to comfort, even though he was beginning to have a hard time believing his own words.

*****

Three hours passed and there had been no word. Surely if Jensen had died, then they would’ve know by now. Every time one of them got up to seek answers at the nurses station, they were met with the same reply. _Dr. McQueen will see you as soon as he can_. What kind of hospital was this?

Just as Jeff was about to take another trip out there, the door open and Dr. McQueen stepped inside.

"How is he?"

"What’s going on?"

"Can I see him?"

Questions filled the room, but the doctor quieted them with a look. "Jensen suffered a seizure, that’s why the alarms started going on the machine. We’ve got him stabilised, but while I didn’t see why there should be any lasting effects from the electrocution, we took him in for a CAT scan and found an Epidural Haematoma, a blood clot. Under normal circumstances, he would wake and regain consciousness, but the head injury, coupled with the electrocution, has kept him unconscious."

"Well, what does that mean?" Jared spoke up, demanding to know.

"We found the problem early, which is a good thing, and we have started on Coumadin-"

"Which is?" Chris asked, not understanding the medical jargon. Why couldn’t doctor's just talk in plain English?

"It’s a blood thinner. We’ll keep a close eye on him, and if the Coumadin doesn’t work, we’ll have to operate to get to the blood clot. But, at the moment, he is doing as well as can be expected and as long as the treatment works, he should make a full recovery."

The atmosphere in the room seemed suddenly lighter, each person feeling like a weight had been lifted from their chests. But there was still the niggling thought that maybe the treatment wouldn't work and about what that would mean. They silently prayed to themselves, begging the Powers That Be that Jensen would come out of this 100% ok.

"Can I go see him?" Jared asked. "I just, I really need to see him."

Dr. McQueen nodded. "Yes, but the same rules still apply. Only one at a time."

Jared nodded and hurried out of the room, desperate to get to Jensen’s bedside. He needed to see with his own eyes that he was still there and that he was on the mend.

He stepped into the room and closed the door before heading right on over and leaning over to kiss Jensen on his forehead.

"Don’t you ever do that to me again, you hear? You scared the crap out of me." Jared sat down, taking Jensen’s hand in his own once again, his other hand reaching up so smooth Jensen’s hair away from his face. "As soon as you wake up, I’m gonna tell you I love you, ok? I don’t care if you think it’s too soon, because if I ever have to go through anything like this again without you knowing how I feel, then I don’t think I can live with myself. Pretty selfish, huh?"

Jared continued to sit for a while in silence, just watching Jensen’s face while he continued to hold his hand and allowed his fingers to caress Jensen’s stubbly cheek.

"I want you to meet my parents," Jared said suddenly. "Not right away but I want them to know the man I’ve fallen in love with and for them to love you as much as I do. Meg, my little sister, I know she’s just gonna die when she sees you walking into the house." He chuckled a little as he imagined her face. "That’s why you gotta get better, baby. I’m gonna show you off to the whole world and let them know that you’re mine."

Jared’s mind wandered off and felt his eyelids beginning to get heavier. But when he closed them, he could only replay what had happened in his mind and the cracking sound as he fractured one of Jensen’s ribs. It was making him feel all kind of uneasy, so he forced his eyes back open.

Not long after, the door opened and a nurse walked in. "Sorry Mr. Padalecki, time's up. You can come back a little later and sit with him for a while."

Jared nodded and stood. He leaned down and kissed Jensen on his cheek before stepping away and following the nurse out. He made his way back to the waiting room to see that only Chris, Steve and Mike were still there. Apparently Tom had taken Sophia home so she could get some rest and Jeff was on a mission to find out how something like this could’ve happened.

"Heads are gonna roll of he has anything to do with it," Mike said as he filled Jared in.

Jeff was a good guy. Jared honestly believed that it wasn’t his fault. But someone had to pay for what had happened and they would if Jared had anything to do with it.

******

Three days later, Jared was back at the hospital after going home to try and sleep for a while. When that didn’t happen, he had a quick shower and came straight back. Paparazzi had gathered round the main entrance to the building, waiting for a quick shot of him, so he used a side entrance to avoid them. It was only natural that they would be there, like vultures hovering over a carcass, and Jared suddenly wished for the first time that he wasn’t famous. And the more he thought about it, the more he really did wish it was true. When Jensen was better, he would have a serious think about his career path.

Jensen was doing a lot better. He had come off the ventilator, now able to breathe on his own, and his treatment was working better than the doctor hoped. They were a little concerned that Jensen had yet to come round, but after his accident, it really wasn’t surprising.

He had been moved out of the ICU and into a private room, allowing him and his visitors privacy, for which Jared was thankful.

When Jared got to Jensen’s room, he found two people in there that he had never seen before. Looking at the man and woman, he guessed they were Jensen’s parents, as the resemblance was obvious.

He cleared his throat, already feeling uncomfortable, trying to get their attention. It worked and they turned around, directing questioning gazes towards him.

"Um, hi. Mr. and Mrs, Ackles? I’m, er, Jared. Padalecki." He didn’t expect their faces to light up with recognition and he most certainly didn’t expect Jensen’s mother to get up and give him a hug.

"You’re exactly how he described you," she said with a smile as she pulled away.

"Um, what?" Jared asked, a little perplexed.

Jensen’s father approached him and offered him his hand. "It’s good to meet you, Jared. Jensen has told us a lot about you."

"Really?" Jared asked flushing. He and Jensen hadn’t been together all that long and already his parents knew about him. That made him feel a little guilty that he hadn’t yet told his own parents. "I have to admit, Jensen hasn’t really spoken about you."

Mr. Ackles laughed lightly, shaking his head. "That sounds like Jensen. Never did talk about his family much."

"I’m sorry, sir, I didn’t mean…" Jared trailed off, feeling as though he had said something he shouldn’t.

"Don’t worry about it. We know how Jensen is. And the name's Alan. ‘Mr.’ makes me feel so old. And don‘t be calling her ‘Mrs.‘, either. It‘s Donna. We‘re easy going folk, never did much like the formal stuff."

"Right. Sorry," Jared said, blushing slightly.

"You know," Donna started, turning to look at her son who, although he didn’t look as pale, had yet to wake up. "Jensen told us how shy and polite you are…it’s nice to see a young man who has been in this business who has kept his manners."

Jared smiled. "You can thank my momma for that. She’d cut me with a switch if I so much as said anything without being courteous."

Donna smiled and turned back, but the smile didn’t quite reach her eyes. Seeing her son like this must really be a shock for her. "You know, we should go and get some coffee," she said after a short silence. "Let you have some time alone here."

"You don’t have to…" Jared started but was cut off by a look that only a mother could give.

"Don’t be silly, he’s your boyfriend as well as my son. You deserve to spend some time alone with him, too."

"Thank you," Jared replied, at a sudden loss for what to say. Jensen’s parents were incredible, and once Jensen was on the mend, he couldn’t wait to get to know them better. Donna went over to the bed and leaned down to kiss Jensen on the forehead, then they were leaving him on his own.

Jared wasted no time in getting over to Jensen’s side, sitting down, taking ahold of his hand and bringing his other one to the side of his face.

"Hey," Jared whispered, convinced that Jensen could hear him. "I just met your parents and I gotta say, they’re incredible. I can only imagine how tired they must be."

Jared stopped talking for a while and instead just gazed at his unconscious lover while stroking his hand gently.

"I hope you’re not gonna leave us waiting too long," he said finally, emotions coming to the surface suddenly. "I miss talking to you and holding you, and I want to tell you how much you mean to me and have you respond. I hate seeing you like this…I just want you to be better." His eyes pooled with tears and as he blinked one spilled over the edge, then another. "I’m so scared I’m going to lose you and I can’t, I just can’t so you have to wake up. Please, Jen, please."

It was as if Jensen had heard him pleading, for the next moment his hand gave way to a slight movement, causing Jared to go instantly still. "Jen?" Jared breathed, his heart picking up in his chest, leaving his blood to pound loudly in his ears. "Baby?"

Jensen’s hand moved again, fingers curling around Jared’s own, the slight pressure causing Jared to almost sob with relief. Jensen’s eye lids started to flutter, his mouth parting in a breathy sigh as he started to regain consciousness.

"J-Jay…" The sound was barely audible, but Jared heard it as if it were coming from his home entertainment system.

"Yeah, Jen, I’m here." He lifted his hand and cupped Jensen’s cheek, smoothing his thumb across his cheek bone.

"Jay," Jensen breathed again, head turning slightly into the touch, his eyes still closed.

Jared blinked through tears of relief as he reached over and pressed the call button. It was clear that Jensen wasn’t going to wake up properly just yet, but it was an amazing relief to hear Jensen say his name.

The nurse came in, eyes immediately going to Jared.

"He’s waking up," Jared told her, a smile on his face.

She nodded quickly. "I’ll go and page Dr. McQueen," she said before she disappeared from the room.

Jared turned his attention back to Jensen, whose head was still turned into his hand and after three days, he finally relaxed. Every thing was going to be ok, and with the sound of Jensen’s voice, he truly believed it now.

**

An hour or so went by and Jensen remained asleep. Dr. McQueen had explained that it would take Jensen a bit to come round fully, but he was really pleased with his progress and expected Jensen to be fully awake by the following morning, if not sooner.

Jensen’s parents were thrilled that their son was waking up, and although they wanted to stay, jet lag was catching up with them, so they left Jared alone with him, trusting that Jared would call if there was any change. The nurses had tried to pry Jared away from Jensen’s bed in order for him to get some food, but Jared wasn’t budging until Jensen was fully awake.

*****

As the day wore on, Jensen's eyes had fluttered open briefly several times, only to close again. Each time, Jared would speak to him quietly, encouragingly, but Jensen just seemed to not have the strength to keep them open for long. Even though he had been assured this was normal, especially in someone who had been unconscious for a few days after receiving any sort of trauma, Jared was still too anxious to fully relax. He remained by Jensen's side, holding his hand, waiting for his boyfriend to come back to him.

Jared couldn’t wait to get Jensen out of this place. He had always hated hospitals, ever since he could remember. He wondered briefly if it had anything to with the time he got knocked out by his brother’s too fast, too hard pitch. Waking up with all these faces staring at you was unnerving, as was the doctors and nurses prodding you.

His thoughts drifted to how this had happened. According to Jeff, no one was admitting to the accusations of negligence. He doubted if anyone would.

A sudden moan from the bed snapped his attention back to Jensen. He could see he was trying to wake up again, so he continued with the soft words of encouragement, fingers tracing the line of stubbly jaw.

"J-Jared," Jensen whispered, eyes blinking open, desperate to focus.

"Yeah, Jen. I’m here," Jared smiled, eyes watering as he was able to get eye contact with Jensen for the first time in days.

"Hurts," Jensen grimaced, his eyes slipping shut, but then opening again. "My head, it hurts and..and my foot. I don’t-what happened?"

Jared swallowed, his fingers tightening around Jensen’s as he started to explain. "You were electrocuted on the set. Stepped on a bald cable. Your foot's burned from the electricity and you hit your head pretty badly."

Jensen nodded and tried to talk again, but his throat was too dry. Jared seemed to notice this and reached over to the bedside table and poured a small glass of water out for him. He placed the straw against his dry lips and allowed Jensen to take a few sips to lubricate his dry throat.

"Am I ok?" Jensen asked as Jared placed the glass back down.

Jared smiled gently, resting his arm on the bed and running his fingers through his lover's hair. "You will be…but you gave us a big scare."

"Sorry," Jensen said, mind trying to take in the information.

"Don’t be sorry. It wasn’t your fault. You did scare the shit out of me for a while. I’ve just never been so close to losing the one thing that I never want to lose." Jared sniffed and wiped at his eyes, not want to start crying in front of Jensen.

Jensen reached up and cupped Jared’s cheek, thumb stroking under his eye lightly. "You’re not going to lose me," Jensen told him as firmly as he could. "Not ever."

Jared nodded, sniffing again before he turned his head into Jensen’s hand and pressed a kiss to his palm. "I love you," he whispered, not able to hold back the torrent of emotion.

But before Jensen could even utter any sort of reply, Dr. McQueen chose that moment to walk into the room.

"Well, Jensen. I’m glad to see you're finally awake," he started, not noticing the tension in the room. He made a few checks, examining Jensen, asking him a few questions, which Jensen answered fine, nothing hindering his mind.

"Ok, so everything looks really good. We’re still going to keep you in for a few days, just to monitor you. I’ll get you a prescription of pain killers to help with your foot and I’ll have one of the nurses to redress it tomorrow. I‘m also going to put you on a course of antibiotics to stop any infections."

"Will it heal up ok?" Jensen asked, curious to know the long terms effect of the burn.

"It should heal up fine, but you’ll have to have it looked at by a doctor if it’s not healing properly. And I want you to take it easy, try not to move your upper body too much. You have a cracked rib and I don’t want you damaging it further, ok?"

"How did I get a cracked rib?" Jensen asked curiously. He didn’t notice the look of shame filter across Jared’s face, too intent on the answers Dr. McQueen was giving him.

"You got it when Jared here was giving you CPR. He was doing everything correctly, but the ribs are fragile things. I think he applied just a tad too much pressure. But, if he hadn’t, I’m pretty sure you wouldn't have made it to the hospital. Your young man saved your life." Dr. McQueen placed Jensen’s chart back on the end of his bed. "I’ll be back in a few hours to see how you’re doing, ok?" And with that, he left the room.

*****

Jensen felt so tired still, but after that last piece of information, he knew he wouldn’t be able to get any sleep.

"You saved my life?" Jensen asked, his voice barely a whisper. His heart beat rapidly in his chest as his feelings for the man next to him grew ten fold.

Jared closed his eyes tight as the memories from the moment washed over him, making him tremble like a leaf in the breeze. "You weren’t breathing…an’-an’ all I could think about was not letting you die, not letting you leave me after we had only just found each…" A lone tear slipped out from behind Jared’s closed eyes, leaving a wet trail down his cheek.

"I can’t believe you saved my life," Jensen breathed, his voice tight with emotion.

"I would do it over and over again if it meant you could stay with me," Jared spoke softly, his eyes opening to stare at Jensen.

Jensen reached up again and laced his fingers through Jared’s hair at the back of his head before he pulled him down so they were barely a breath away from each other. "God…I’m so in love with you."

Jared heard those words and closed the distance between them, pressing his lips gently against Jensen’s, not caring that Jensen hadn’t cleaned his teeth in days. His mouth opened to accommodate Jensen’s probing tongue. He allowed Jensen to take control of the kiss, allowed him to lean up and press firmer against him, but immediately pulled back when there was the distinct sound of a throat clearing.

"By the way," Jared whispered before he pulled away. "Your parents are in town."

Jensen chuckled and looked toward the door when Jared sat back in his chair again, and sure enough, there were his parents.

He grinned at them and they walked further into his room, making declarations of their relief and love for their son.

"As soon as you’re well enough, you’re coming back home, you hear? Just to stay, even for a few days, but you’re coming home." Donna told Jensen after she had finally stopped crying.

"Ma, it’s not that simple," Jensen told her, glancing at Jared. "We’re in the middle of shooting a movie and I can’t just up and leave."

"Actually," Jared started. "I spoke with Jeff earlier and filming has been put on hold until you’re 100% better and until he finds out who fucked up. So, yeah, you can go." Jared felt a sudden twinge in his heart as he thought about Jensen going home and leaving him behind. But he wouldn’t put up a fight.

"Don’t look like that, young man," Donna scolded Jared, her hands on her hips. "You’ll be coming as well and I don’t want to hear another word about it, ok? You’re family now, so it’s only fitting that you meet the rest."

"I don’t know what to say," Jared replied, genuinely in awe at the acceptance of Jensen’s family.

"Say you’ll come," Jensen said, eyes wide and questioning.

"Ok," Jared smiled. "I’ll come."

******

Jensen was released from the hospital three days later, and with little convincing, he was staying with Jared. Jensen needed crutches so he didn’t put any weight down on his foot. Luckily there were no weeping blisters, so it should heal with minimal scarring. It was painful, but the pain killers helped, even though they made him a little loopy sometimes.

"You know," Jensen said as he collapsed onto Jared’s plush couch. "You have me all alone here and we’re not due to go to my parents for another week or so…so what are you going to do with me?" He raised one eye brow at the younger man, smirking as Jared’s cheeks turned pink. "You’re adorable, you know that?"

Jared's blush deepened and he ducked his head.

"So, you gonna answer?"

"What?"

"What are you planning to do with me?"

"What I want to do with you can’t happen until you’re ready." Jared told him, a matter-of-factly.

"Yeah, about that," Jensen patted the spot next to him and waited until Jared sat down before continuing. "This whole nearly dying thing kinda makes me have a different perspective on things."

"Oh yeah?" Jared asked, taking Jensen’s hand in his own and brining it up to his lips, kissing the palm gently.

Jensen let out a shuddering breath, his eyes instantly deepening in colour. "Yeah. I want to take things further with you. I want-" Jensen was cut off by Jared, who kissed him deeply, drawing out a filthy moan from the depths of Jensen's throat. "-you." Jensen sighed as Jared gently trailed kisses down his neck. "I want you so badly."

Jared grinned against Jensen’s neck, teeth scraping lightly against the sensitive skin, drawing out a whimper from the other man. He could feel Jensen’s fingers pulling at the curls at the base of his neck, making his heart beat faster, heat pooling in his stomach.

"Touch me," Jensen gasped, his head tipping back, exposing his throat further. "God, Jared, _touch me_." Jensen took Jared’s hand and placed it against his growing erection. His hips bucked at the contact, arching towards the heat of Jared’s hand.

Jared rubbed against the tenting denim, adrenaline rushing through his body at finally being able to touch Jensen the way he had been craving to. Unfortunately, just as Jared was pulling at the zipper of Jensen’s jeans, the front door opened with a bang, and loud voices drifted into the hallway, causing him and Jensen to break apart with a displeased grunt.

"Fuck," Jensen groaned as the voices got louder. "How the hell did they know we’re here?" He picked up a pillow and placed it on his crotch and sunk back into the cushions.

Before Jared had a chance to say anything, Mike, Tom, Chris and Steve walked into the living room, each wearing shit-eating grins. It was obvious they knew they had interrupted something with the way they were looking at him.

"So!" Mike exclaimed as he sat down on the love seat, pulling a laughing Tom down onto his lap. "We’re here to officially welcome you back home…well, into Jared’s home anyway."

"Yeah, man," Chris added. "We’re glad you're ok."

"Thanks guys," Jensen smiled warmly. Even though his friends could be a pain in the backside, he really did love them.

*****

"God," Jensen groaned. "I thought they would never leave."

Jared collapsed next to him, nodding in agreement. "Remind me to change the locks."

"With pleasure."

"So, you tired?" Jared asked after a bit, turning his head to look at Jensen who was looking back with the same glint in his eyes.

"Why, what were you thinking?" Jensen asked, smirking.

"Well…I was thinking about picking up where we left off earlier…in the bedroom."

"Well, Mr Padalecki, I think that is the best idea I have heard all day." Jensen went to reach for his crutches, but was surprised when Jared stood and leant down to pull his arm around his shoulders. "What’re you doing?"

"Taking you upstairs," he replied with a wink, putting his other arm underneath Jensen’s legs and lifting him up.

"Whoa!" Jensen clutched on to Jared as he was lifted from the couch. "Don’t you drop me. I don’t want any bruises on my ass."

"Oh, you’ll have bruises," Jared laughed, carrying him up the stairs into his bedroom. "They just won’t be on your ass."

Jared kicked the door shut behind him before he walked over to his bed and semi-dropped Jensen down.

Jensen laughed, a blush colouring through his cheeks, giving him a warm glow that made butterflies flutter around in Jared’s stomach.

"God, do you know how beautiful you are?" Jared asked, honestly in awe with the way Jensen looked at that moment. "I just can’t believe that you’re mine."

Jensen took ahold of Jared’s shirt and pulled him down so he was hovering above him. "Believe it," he whispered before Jared claimed his mouth.

Jared settled his weight on top of Jensen, allowing their bodies to align for ultimate contact. He gasped into Jensen's mouth, and tugged his at his lower lip with his teeth, grinding down onto the hardness he felt beneath his own. "I want you," Jared panted, pulling back just enough to look down into Jensen’s stormy eyes. "Want you so bad."

"Take me," Jensen said simply, feeling the heat and arousal from Jared’s body being absorbed into his own, making him thrum with desire.

Jared sat up and straddled Jensen’s waist. He grinned down at him and arched an eyebrow cockily as he teasingly lowered the zip on his hoodie, each click of the teeth like the seconds sounding on a clock; a clock that was going far too slow. Finally, it was open, hanging loosely against Jared's chest and he shrugged it off, letting it drop to the floor.

As much as Jensen was enjoying the show, Jared was just prolonging something that didn’t necessarily have to take that long. So, in his bid to help move things along, he sat up and grabbed Jared's t-shirt at the hem before he pulled it off over his head, haphazardly throwing it away . His hands came up and cupped Jared’s cheeks, drawing him into a short, but deep kiss.

Jared got the idea and stripped Jensen of his sweater, leaving him in the same predicament as him; naked from the waist up. He pushed him back so he was laying down again, and got off him in order to disrobe him completely. He unsnapped his jeans, carefully avoiding the prominent bulge.

"You’re a tease," Jensen groaned, face flushed as he watched Jared.

Jared grinned. "But you still love me. Lift up."

Jensen did as he was told and lifted his hips up, enabling Jared to pull his jeans down and off, throwing them on the floor to the steadily growing pile of clothes. He fiddled with the waistband of Jensen’s briefs, looking up as if asking for permission.

Jensen nodded, his heart fluttering in his chest. He lifted up again, closing his eyes as Jared pulled off the remaining material that was hiding his most intimate area.

"God," Jared breathed, boxers now gone, staring at the length of Jensen’s body. "You’re gorgeous."

Jensen blinked his eyes open, cheeks fusing with colour as he saw the way Jared was looking at him. He almost wanted to cup his hands in front of himself, but refrained. "Hurry."

Jared nodded and quickly shucked out of the remainder of his clothing. He knelt down at the foot of the bed and lifted Jensen’s uninjured foot, placing a soft kiss on the sole.

Jensen let out an abrupt laugh, trying to move his foot away. "Did you just _kiss_ my _foot_?"

"You’ve got cute feet," was the reply, and Jared held it firm as he placed an open mouth kiss on the inside of his ankle, then further up.

Jensen felt the ache in his groin bloom as Jared moved further and further up his leg, getting so close to his crotch he could barely stand it. He groaned deep in his chest when Jared pressed another wet kiss at the very top of his inner thigh and panted his name. "Jah-red," Jensen could barely speak. "Please."

Jared just smirked and continued the blissful torture, mirroring the actions on the other leg. By the time he reached Jensen’s groin for a second time, his lover was already beginning to sweat, the light sheen on his face glistening in the low light. He crawled over him, dropping kisses against his tummy, his chest, his neck, finally hovering over his face.

"I love you," Jared whispered, reaching up with his hand to comb his fingers through Jensen’s hair.

"I love you, too."

Jared grinned and ducked his head, kissing the words from Jensen’s lips. He settled his weight down on top of him, skin finally touching skin. Each man gasped at the feeling, heat flooding through both of them.

Jared shifted, still kissing Jensen, now moving his hips slightly, bringing the much desired friction. He gasped as Jensen arched up underneath him, and his hips started to move a little faster.

"God," Jensen groaned as Jared kissed away from his mouth, lips dragging across is jaw, down to his neck. Jensen arched against the slight scrape of teeth against his sensitive skin, giving a slight shiver.

Jensen’s flavour was driving Jared wild. Never before had he tasted something so raw, so passionate, so delicious. He could feel his heartbeat pulsing loudly in his ears, echoing the pulsing in his cock. But as much as he wanted to just slide into Jensen and take him, he was going to take his time, learn every patch of skin by heart, slowly making Jensen go insane.

"Jared, please," Jensen panted, his entire body heating up from Jared’s ministrations. "Need you."

Jared smiled against Jensen’s skin, slowly sliding down again so he was level with Jensen’s nipples. "Don’t worry," he said, voice sugary sweet, "I’ll get you there."

Jensen just sighed in mock frustration, but it caught in his throat when Jared’s mouth encased his left nipple, teeth pulling on the already hard nub. His hands immediately went to Jared’s head, fingers delving into his soft hair, tugging him closer.

Jared bit back a moan as Jensen pulled on his hair and continued to lavish attention on his lover's chest. He didn’t know what it was, but it seemed he had developed a sudden kink for sucking on nipples; and not just any nipples, Jensen’s. He gave the left one a last flick of his tongue then switched to the other, giving it the same attention.

"Oh fuck," Jensen gasped as Jared tugged just a little too hard with his teeth; but he didn’t care. What Jared was doing to him was driving him wild.

"Ok?" Jared asked, pulling his head back slightly, lips bruised from over use.

Jensen lifted his head, and nodded. "God yeah," he said with a smile, eyelids heavy as he gazed down at Jared.

Jared grinned back, continuing his path down Jensen’s body, his teeth scraping against the smooth skin as he descended. When he reached his belly button, he kissed around it, loving the way the muscles jumped underneath his touch.

Finally, _finally_ Jensen felt him hovering over his hard cock, feeling the soft breeze of Jared’s breath caressing it delicately. He lay there in anticipation, but he did not expect Jared to completely bypass it. Instead, Jared grasped a hold of Jensen’s left leg and lifted it so it was over his shoulder.

"Jay…what’re you… _uuungh_ …" Jensen eyes rolled in his head as he felt Jared’s hands cup and part his ass, his tongue and lips suddenly on his most intimate area. Jensen’s back arched as he felt Jared’s tongue press inside him, stretching him ever so slightly.

Jared moaned deep in his throat as he was met my the musky taste, something that was purely Jensen. He had never done this to anyone else before, had never wanted to, but he was struck with sudden urge to taste his lover _everywhere_. His fingers held Jensen’s cheeks apart, and he continued to devour him.

"Jay," Jensen panted again, back aching as Jared hit a particularly sensitive spot. "Oh God..." He could feel himself slowly coming apart at the seams, being driven carefully to the edge. His body sagged in disappointment as Jared seemed to back away, but he cried out in surprise when Jared’s finger pushed past any resistance and straight into him.

Jared held his hand still for a moment, allowing Jensen to get accustomed to the intrusion, but as soon as Jensen started pushing down onto his finger, he pulled it out before pushing it back in.

"You ok?" Jared asked as he looked up and saw the flush on his lover's body.

"Y-yeah," Jensen replied, voice choked with pleasure. " More." He spread his legs as far as he could, restricted slightly because his left leg was still over Jared’s shoulder.

The wanton look on Jensen's face made Jared return his attention to the task at hand with renewed vigour. He thrust his finger into Jensen’s tight heat slowly at first, but with a gentle force behind it. He could still taste Jensen on his tongue and just thinking about having his tongue back _there_ was making his mouth water. Shifting, he lowered his head back down and allowed his tongue to aid him in bringing Jensen to the brink.

" _More,"_ Jensen groaned, lifting his hips to meet Jared’s thrusting finger. His back arched again as he felt Jared press in two fingers, his tongue still sliding against him. Fireworks suddenly went off behind his eyelids as Jared his that spot inside him. "FUCK!"

Jared smiled to himself and moved his mouth upwards, lips sliding along Jensen’s perineum to his tight ball sac, up to his leaking cock, all the while keeping his fingers moving. He lapped at the shaft before he engulfed the head. His fingers pistoned in and out as he bobbed up and down on Jensen’s hard cock.

Jensen gasped and writhed, trying to push back onto Jared’s fingers all the while trying to thrust up into his hot mouth.

"Oh God, oh God, oh God," Jensen babbled, slowly going insane. His fingers pulled at Jared’s hair, trying not make him move faster, he was almost there.

Jared suddenly pulled off Jensen, moving away from him, up onto his knees.

"Wha…?" Jensen blinked owlishly up at him, feeling the loss of Jared’s mouth and fingers like a blow to the gut.

"I want to fuck you, Jen," Jared said, eyes blown wide as he took in the sight in front of him.

Jensen groaned, his head dropping back on to the bed. "Please."

Jared scrambled off the bed and went the dresser and pulled out the tube of lube he knew was there and a single condom. He went back to the bed and knelt in between Jensen’s legs. He opened the foil packet and slid the condom on with trembling hands, then flipped the cap on the tube open and squirted out a generous amount, lathering his cock with it.

Jensen just lay there watching Jared get himself ready, his arousal growing as he watched Jared touch himself. "You are so beautiful," Jensen thought, not realising he had spoken out loud until he saw Jared’s sunny grin.

"You’re one to talk," Jared said, moving so he was pressing against Jensen’s loosened opening. "Are you sure you want this?" Jared asked, needing to be sure.

Jensen nodded, wrapping his legs around Jared’s waist pulling him closer, trying to get him inside. "I never wanted anything more than I want this."

That was all the confirmation Jared needed, and with steady movements, he started to push his way inside his lover's body. He broke past the initial resistance with a sigh, Jensen’s heat enticing him further. He felt Jensen stiffen beneath him, and paused, allowing him to get used to the intrusion.

Jensen tried to will his body to relax and with some gentle, encouraging words from Jared, he did. He felt Jared slip in deeper until he was sheathed completely inside.

Jared held himself over Jensen, trying to hold still, but the tightness and the heat were making it damn near impossible. "Jen…gotta move…" he gasped, trying to control himself.

"Do it," Jensen told him, wrapping his arms around Jared’s neck and bringing his head down to fuse their mouths together.

Jared pulled out and snapped his hips forwards, pulling a moan from his mouth and a cry from Jensen’s. He moved slow and steady as he fed on Jensen’s mouth, swallowing all the gasps and moans that spilled from his lips.

"Harder," Jensen grunted as they broke away. He needed more.

Jared complied with Jensen’s wishes and picked up the pace, hips snapping forward, aiming to hit that spot inside Jensen again. He changed the angle slightly and knew instantly that he had hit his target.

Jensen held on tighter as thrust after thrust hit his prostate, bringing him closer and closer to the edge. But he didn’t want it to be over just yet.

Jared's axis was suddenly thrown off as he found himself being flipped over by Jensen, now on his back with Jensen straddling him, cock still firmly inside him. He look up into Jensen’s flushed face and saw the almost mischievous glint in his eyes.

"Wanted to ride you," Jensen said by way of explanation as he lifted up and slammed back down. This time it was Jared who arched beneath him, toes and fingers curling into the sheets.

Jared managed to pick his hand up and wrap it around Jensen’s erection, pulling on it in time with the other man’s rapid movements.

"Mmmm…Jay…yes, yes, yes," Jensen eyes slipped closed as he head leant back, reeling with all the sensations that were running through his body.

"Oh God," Jared groaned as he felt Jensen tighten around him. "I’m not gonna last."

In response to those words, Jensen picked up his pace further still, now feeling his own orgasm only a breath away.

Jared decied he want to take control again, so flipped them back into their orginal position, now able to move frantically within his lover. He held himself up by his left arm, elbow locked so he wouldn't fall, his right hand still pumping furiously on Jensen’s hard shaft.

"Jay…I’m gonna come," Jensen moaned, feeling his balls draw up to his body. "Oh God, I’m-I’m oh shit, oh shit--oh _uuuuungh Jared_!!!!!" Jensen’s body ceased to move for a split second before he exploded across their stomachs, his come splashing up onto his chest, covering him. He writhed uncontrollably, babbling nonsense as he came and came, Jared still thrust inside him.

After the waves of his orgasm waned, Jensen blinked his eyes open and looked at Jared, who was on the very edge. He reached down between them and grazed his fingernails against Jared’s nipple while biting on his lower lip.

The look of pure innocence on Jensen’s red, sweaty face caused Jared to tumble over the edge, into the cresting waves of his release. He thrust jerkily, pumping load after load into the condom, feeling as if his soul was on fire.

Gradually he came down from his high and managed to roll himself off Jensen, trying to catch his breath as they curled into one another.

******

After they had cleaned themselves up in the shower, they were back in bed, wrapped around each other. Jensen’s head was on Jared’s chest and Jared combed his fingers lazily through his hair.

"I always knew this would happen," Jared said suddenly, blushing at his words as soon as he said them.

Jensen turned his head to look up at Jared. "What do you mean?"

"You can’t laugh at me."

"Promise," he replied, smiling.

"When I was really into _Driving Force,_ I would always say that we would get together and this is where we would end up," Jared told him, closing his eyes in embarrassment.

"You are so adorable, you know that?" Jensen grinned, kissing Jared's chest.

"No, I’m a nerd." Jared said, blinking his eyes open.

"But you’re my nerd," Jensen replied, smiling softly up at Jared.

"Yeah. I am."

**

They were on their way to Dallas, an hour left of the flight, and Jared’s stomach had knots the size of fists in it. His leg had started jiggling up and down, almost violently, halfway through the flight, and no matter how many times Jensen put his hand on his knee, he just couldn’t stop.

"I don’t get it," Jensen was saying in another attempt to calm Jared’s nerves. "Why’re you so nervous? You’ve already met my parents."

"But I haven’t met your sister or your brother or your grandparents-"

"Grandparents? What’re you talking about?" Jensen asked, slightly baffled.

"Your mom called me and told me that she was inviting your grandparents down, too," Jared told him, his eyes wide, filled with barely concealed worry.

Jensen laughed and pulled Jared to him, hugging him. "God, I love you, you know that? You’re so cute!"

Jared pulled away and pouted, his eyes narrowing. "You just wait until you have to meet my family. Then we’ll see who’s cute!"

That shut Jensen up.

******

Turned out that Jared had nothing to worry about. Jensen’s parents were just as charming and open as they had been when they had first met. Jensen’s sister was a sweetheart, although she didn’t give them much space to breathe; it seemed she had the world's biggest crush on Jared. It took a while for her to understand that he was just a normal guy, much like her brother, but even so, she stuck to him like a barnacle on a whale's belly. Jared secretly enjoyed having her around them; Jensen was cute when he was jealous.

Even his grandparents were awesome, although he hand the misfortune to have a butt that Grandma Ackles just couldn’t resist.

Unfortunately, Jensen’s brother Josh couldn’t make it down to see them. Jensen seemed to be a little annoyed about that, but Jared found ways of distracting him.

*****

After a week spent at the Ackles’ family home, they were making the few hours drive it took to get to Jared’s parents. He had called and asked if they would mind them coming to visit, and of course, his mother was thrilled that he was coming home for a few days and bringing his new boyfriend with him. His dad, on the other hand, didn’t sound as thrilled. He really hoped that there wouldn’t be any problems.

*****

It was now Jensen who was sitting in the passenger seat and having a mini freak out. He was pretending he was sleeping, his head resting on his hand which was propped up against the window, but he knew it was only so long before Jared called his bluff. He felt the car coming to a halt, and his eyes flew open in a sudden bout of panic, thinking they were already at the Padalecki residence. This was not the case. Jared had pulled the truck into a rest area and was now looking at him, brows furrowed in worry.

"You know we don’t have to go if you don’t want to," Jared spoke up, reaching across to pick up his left hand.

"Huh?"

"I can call my mom and say something has come up."

Jensen smiled slightly, but shook his head. "No. I’m sorry. I’m just…"

"Freaking out a little?" Jared supplied.

Jensen nodded. "Yeah. I can’t help it. What if they don’t like me?"

Jared let go of Jensen’s hand, only to cup the side of his face. "You don’t have anything to worry about. I’m sure they will love you." _I hope,_ Jared thought, picturing his father.

"Right. OK," Jensen nodded, taking in a deep breath, but he couldn’t help but feel that sense of foreboding you get when you just _know_ all isn’t going to go as planned. "I’ve got you with me so it’ll be fine."

He wished he believed that.

******

"Mom! We’re here!" Jared called out as he kicked the door open to his parents' house. He dropped his bag and reached behind himself to grasp on to Jensen’s hand, pulling his reluctant boyfriend in behind him.

"Hi honey!" Sherri Padalecki came into the hall, having obviously just come from the kitchen. She rushed over to her youngest son and pulled him down into a hug, squeezing him tight. "It’s about time you came home for a visit, young man!"

Jared laughed and released his mother, turning to Jensen and pulling him forward. "Momma, this is Jensen, my boyfriend."

Jensen stepped forward hesitantly, never feeling so nervous in his life. "It’s nice to meet you, Mrs. Padalecki." He spoke politely, holding his hand out for her to shake.

"None of that ‘Mrs. Padalecki’ crap. It’s Sherri, ok?" She smiled and ignored Jensen’s hand, pulling him into a hug instead. She pulled back and took a look at his face, recognition sparking in her brain.

"Jared, isn’t this the young man whose face used to cover your bedroom wall?"

Jared’s eyes widened comically and his face flushed red with embarrassment. "Momma!"

Jensen sniggered behind his hand, enjoying the humiliation of his boyfriend's teen years coming back to haunt him. "You used to have posters of me on your wall?"

Jared scowled at him, lower lip protruding ever so slightly. "Shut up," he muttered.

Sherri laughed, shaking her head at her son. "Well, I guess you proved us all wrong."

"What do you mean?" Jensen asked, curious.

"Nothing!" Jared spoke up, glaring at his mother.

"He always used to say that he was going to make you his boyfriend. Any other mother maybe worried that her fourteen year old son had just outted himself, but I like to think of myself as a modern woman."

"I hate you."

"Don’t say that to your mother," Jensen mock scolded. "And besides, I think it’s kinda cute."

Jared beamed at Jensen before he picked up their bags. "We’re both in my old room, right?"

Sherri nodded. "Yeah. I’ve made up the bed, so it’s all fresh. But, if you feel the need to, you know," she gestured between them both, "just keep the noise down, ok?"

"Oh my god," Jared muttered, cheeks flushing again.

Sherri just laughed and headed back into the kitchen, intending to fix the pair of them some drinks.

******

When they got into Jared’s room, they dumped the bags and collapsed onto the bed.  
  
"M'tired," Jared groaned.  
  
"I'm not, I'm nervous."  
  
"My mom loved you! Why are you still nervous?" Jared questioned, turning on his side to look at Jensen.  
  
"Uh---your Dad," Jensen stated as though it was obvious.  
  
"Don't worry about Dad, he'll be fine," Jared said trying to convince himself that that was true.

"Where is he any way?"

"Probably still at the station. He’s a cop and spends all hours down there."  
  
There was a knock at the door. "Baby," his Mom said at the crack of the door, "I've got some iced tea and some sandwiches downstairs."  
  
"Thanks Mom, we'll be right down."  
  
****  
  
They were sitting in the living room talking. Sherri and Jared were sitting on the sofa, Jensen was sitting on the floor between Jared's legs as Jared absent mindedly stroked Jensen's neck or shoulders with his fingertips. Sherri was currently the one talking - about Jared when he was younger and ‘so in love’ with Jensen. Jared was bright red and pouting.  
  
"I still remember the day that we told him that I'd take him to see your band, oh - " she smiled cupping the side of Jared's face, "he was so happy. I thought he was gonna do cartwheels across the front yard!"  
  
"Mooooooooom!!"  
  
The front door opened and Jerry walked in. He stopped in the hallway and stared at the man sitting between his son's legs. Jerry narrowed his eyes and walked forward.

"Dad!" Jared said lifting a leg over top of Jensen's form and stood up.  
  
"Hi son," he said hugging him. "How are you?"  
  
"I'm good, Dad. Uh, I want you to meet my boyfriend," he said, motioning to Jensen, who stood and moved to Jared's side. "This is Jensen," he said happily.  
  
"Hi sir, it's really nice to meet you," Jensen said, presenting his hand for a shake, the gesture nothing but friendly. He stood there awkwardly, his hand still stuck out while Jerry just looked at him before he took his hand in a brief shake.

Jared watched his father interact with Jensen and saw exactly what he had expected. He had really hoped that Jerry wouldn’t pull his same old tricks, but it seemed he had.

"So, what’s for dinner?" Jerry asked, turning to his wife, effectively ignoring Jensen.

Jensen glanced at Jared only to gave him a small smile before he was pulled into the conversation. Jensen suddenly realised that this was going to be a long few days.

*******

The evening progressed much the same, Jared’s father glaring at Jensen, only talking to him when he really had to. And to make matters worse, it seemed that Jensen was the only one who noticed it. By the time they turned in, he wasn’t sure if he could stand much more of it.

Jared noticed the shift in Jensen’s mood and didn’t know where to start in apologising for his father and the icy behaviour. He watched him as he got undressed for bed, noticing the slump in his shoulders and his crestfallen face.

When they got under the covers, Jensen had his back to him, laying right on the edge of the bed. Jared ached to reach out to touch him, but he didn’t know if he should. It was making his entire soul hurt seeing his boyfriend like this.

"Jen?" Jared whispered, finally deciding he need to do something about the physical distance between them.

"Yes?" Jensen replied, squeezing his eyes shut. He had never felt so inadequate in his life, hearing Jared’s father talking about Jared’s past boyfriends and the way he seemed to be saying that they were all better than him.

"I’m sorry," Jared said, reaching out to touch Jensen’s bare shoulders. He felt him tense up beneath his touch for a moment, but then he relaxed.

"Not your fault," Jensen replied.

"No, but I still feel horrible."

Jensen didn’t answer, but he did turn around and close the distance between them, snuggling into Jared’s side. "I love you." Jensen whispered, not knowing what else to say.

"I love you, too. And I’m gonna talk to him tomorrow and get him to stop this, ok? If he doesn’t, then we’re gone."

"What?" Jensen asked, lifting his head and looking at Jared in the dark.

"You mean the world to me, and I’m not having any one treat you like this, even if it is my own father."

"God…Jared…"

Jared just smiled and held Jensen close, his mind forming a game plan for the next day.

******

Downstairs, Sherri had a few choice words to say to her husband.

"What on earth do you think you’re doing?"

"What?" Jerry asked, trying to act innocent.

"You know exactly what I mean! And I want to know why!"

"He’s not good enough for Jared," Jerry told her, not elaborating.

"Not good enough? Are you crazy? That boy loves our son and Jared feels the same way. I’ve never seen him so happy!" Sherri shot daggers at Jerry, demanding with her eyes that he explain. But then it suddenly clicked. "You looked into his file, didn’t you?"

Jerry’s silence spoke volumes.

"Oh Jerry! How could you?"

"Don’t give me that. He’s been arrested for drugs! Consumption and possession! Not to mention anti-social behavior! Now tell me how great he is."

Sherri just stood up, shaking her head at her husband. "He was a kid, Jerry. A kid who found fame too fast and went off the rails. You need to grow up and see that it isn’t up to **you** who Jared sees. It’s his happiness I’m concerned about, and if Jensen is the one who makes him happy, then so be it. Stop being a dick."

And with that, she left the room and went upstairs, leaving Jerry alone to take in her words. But she knew that he was too goddamned stubborn for his own good and would not give in easily. She just hoped that Jared could talk some sense into him before things went too far.

**

It had been two days since they had arrived at the Padalecki household and Jensen was feeling more and more isolated. While Jared’s mom was trying to make up for her husband's behaviour, Jensen couldn’t shrug the uneasy feeling whenever the man was around. He hadn’t even been able to let Jared touch him, let alone show any signs of affection toward him while they were in that house, regardless if they were alone or not. He could see that Jared was getting frustrated, but he just didn’t know what to do.

******

On the third day of their visit, Jared had decided to take Jensen out and show him the city he had grown up in. He hoped that being away from the house that Jensen would relax and be able to act like the man Jared had fallen in love with.

They took the rental and drove deeper into the city and parked it before walking along towards the Riverwalk. The atmosphere was a lot more relaxing, and Jared immediately felt the tension drain away from Jensen’s body, so much so that within two minutes of walking, Jensen was laughing along with him, his hand constantly brushing against Jared's.

They walked along the water's edge in the less commercial area. They weren’t stupid, they knew it was possible that people would recognise them, so they tried to keep away from the more populated regions. Gradually, though, they started passing small cafés and bars.

"Hey," Jared interrupted the tranquillity for a moment. "You thirsty?"

Jensen nodded, feeling a little parched.

"Great. I know just the place." Jared smiled and led them over to a place in the middle of a stretch of cafés.

They entered and Jensen saw that it wasn’t anything special, just your standard bar with standard clientele. He followed Jared over to the bar, where the one of the bartenders had his back to them.

"Hey, bitch, how about some service?" Jared spoke cockily.

Jensen gaped at his boyfriend, suddenly shocked that Jared had spoken in such a manner. Before he could say anything, the bartender turned, long dark hair whipping around her, eyes blazing. But when she saw who was standing on the other side of the bar, a wide smile bloomed on her face.

"Jared!" she laughed, clapping her hands. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Jared laughed back and reached across the bar to embrace her. "What, you not pleased to see me, Nona?"

"Shut up!" she said, slapping him across the head. "I thought you were filming at the moment."

"Yeah, but we’ve got a break in shooting for a few weeks. Anyway, what’re you still working in this joint for? I thought you would’ve quit by now."

"We don’t all have the best luck in the world, Mister Movie Star," she said with only a hint of sarcasm. "Anyway, I'm in college part time, and I need something to pay the bills." It was then that her eyes flicked over to Jensen, who was standing off to Jared's side, looking a little lost. "So, who's your friend?"

Jared’s eyes went wide as he was reminded that Jensen was with him. He had been so caught up in catching up that he had momentarily forgotten he wasn’t alone. "Sorry, this is Jensen. Ackles. Jen, this wench is Rhonda, or Nona, as I call her. She was my brother’s girlfriend for two years, and she's still one of my closest friends."

"Nice to meet you, Jensen," Rhonda said, holding out her hand.

"You too," Jensen smiled, taking her hand a giving it a polite shake.

Rhonda smiled back, but then there was a spark of recognition in her eyes, and her smile got wider. "Hold on a damn minute! Jensen Ackles? Jensen, _Driving Force_ , Ackles? Huh."

Jensen looked from her to Jared and grinned. "You used to tell her, too?"

Jared blushed and looked down for a second. "No, but my brother used to tease me about it…so, yeah, she knows."

"If it’s any consolation, I always thought you two would look hot together," she told them, popping a couple of beers open. She slid them across the bar. "On the house!"

"You really are a dirty, perv," Jared said, taking a swig of his drink. "Thinking about me in that way. I feel so, so--"

"Cheap?" Rhonda supplied, eyebrow quirked. "Because, you know, you _are_."

"Ouch!" Jared exclaimed, making a show of clutching his chest. "That hurt."

"They say the truth does," Jensen piped up, feeling comfortable with Jared’s friend. She seemed pretty cool. It was a shame he didn’t have the time to get to know her better.

"Asshole."

"You love you me."

"Yeah, I do," Jared tipped Jensen’s face up with the tip of his fingers and placed a lingering kiss on his lips, forgetting where they were for a brief moment.

"Oh boy," Rhonda sighed, rolling her eyes. "If you weren’t practically my brother, I’d be so turned on right now."

Jensen pulled away laughing, reaching for his beer. He was glad they had come in here. This was the first place in San Antonio he felt like he could be himself.

*******

They ended up spending longer in the bar than intended. The place wasn’t busy, so Rhonda was able to join them for a few drinks.

By the time they got back, it was nearing seven o’clock and they were both in desperate need of a shower before they ate dinner. Jared called out a greeting to his mom and went up the stairs to his room, Jensen following closely behind him.

When Jared opened the door, he stopped dead in his tracks, causing Jensen to walk into the back of him. His eyes were wide in disbelief as he saw his own father going through Jensen’s things.

"What the hell do you think you’re doing?!" Jared exploded.

His father calmly looked up and stared him in the eye. "This is my house and I have a right to know what he’s bringing into it."

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Jared demanded.

Jensen pushed past Jared into the room, looking at his bags that had been invaded. He glared angrily at Jared’s father, knowing exactly what the older man was doing. "I was a kid," he said through clenched teeth. "A stupid goddamn _kid_!"

"It doesn’t matter." Jerry spoke defiantly. "Just because you haven’t been caught in while doesn’t mean that you’ve stopped taking it. I know what you addicts are like."

"That’s ENOUGH!!" Jared roared, face red with anger. "You have no right to be in here and invading our privacy. For fuck's sake, Dad, are you _really_ that narrow minded? Momma was right, you’ve been a cop for too many years. It’s all you know how to do and you use it against those you’re supposed to love!"

"I didn’t!" Jerry tried to defend his actions. "I did it to prove that he isn’t good enough for you."

"And by doing it, you’re hurting _me_ because you’re hurting Jensen! I love him, and you are _not_ going to convince me to think otherwise. **So what** if he smoked pot? News flash, Dad, I did it too! I got stoned nearly every weekend when I was 17 and almost got busted. So, _now_ who isn’t good enough for whom?"

"You’re lying to me." Jerry shook his head, not believing Jared’s words. "I taught you better than that."

"God, you are such an idiot!"

Jared’s mom chose that moment to poke her head into the room, having been disturbed by all the shouting. "What is going on…" Her eyes widened as she saw what Jerry had been doing. "Jerry! Have you lost your mind?! What do you think you’re doing?! I told you to drop all this stupidity!"

"Not now, Sherri."

"Don’t you ‘not now’ _me_!" she told him, her eyes narrowed, her hands on her hips. "You’ve got a hell of a lot of explaining to do!"

While the Padalecki’s were arguing, Jensen slipped out of the room, leaving his things alone and hurried down the stairs. He pulled the car keys from his pocket and rushed out, jumping in and starting the engine in a hurry. He screeched the tires as he pulled out of the driveway and then took off down the road, no particular destination in mind.

******

Back inside, Jared was still arguing with his father when he heard the screeching of tires. He looked around and realised that Jensen was no where to be seen. He rushed over to the window just in time to see the car tearing down the street.

"Shit!" He rushed down the stairs and snatched up his parent's car keys. "I’m going to go find Jensen. And Dad, if anything happens to him, I will NEVER forgive you." And with that he slammed the door shut behind him.

******

"I’ve mad a mistake, haven’t I?" Jerry asked his wife, shoulders slumped.

"I’d say so. Why couldn’t you just be his father for once, and not Detective Inspector Padalecki?" At the end of the day, the man before her was her husband, and she hated fighting with him. But he needed to put right his own mistakes without any help from her or Jared.

"I just wanted to make sure that Jared wasn’t going to mess up his life."

"Don’t you think that’s Jared’s choice to make?" Sherri stepped up to her husband and pulled his taller frame into her.

Jerry sighed and closed his eyes, allowing his wife to hug him. "I’ll apologise when they get back. Hopefully, it’s not too late to fix it." _Hopefully it isn’t,Sherri thought as she continued to hold him._

_*******_

Jared kept calling Jensen’s phone, but he wasn’t picking up. He even called Rhonda to ask if he had turned up at the bar, but she hadn’t seen him. Jared was at his wits end. Where the hell was he? He could be anywhere.

He came to a junction and could either turn left, towards the city, or right, heading out of the city. He was torn, but went with a snap decision and turned right. He hoped he had made the right choice.

********

Jensen heard his phone ringing again, but couldn’t bring himself to answer it. He still felt far too angry to talk calmly, hence the reason why he'd left the house so quickly. If he'd stayed there any longer, he would’ve punched Jerry in the face, and he really didn’t need to be hauled off to jail.

He finally stopped driving when he reached a small parking area by the river. He got out of the car and climbed up onto the hood, laying with his back against the windscreen, looking up at the stars and listening to the gurgling sound of the water. Being somewhere peaceful like this always helped him calm down and put things into perspective.

His phone sounded again, but he really couldn’t be bothered to get up and get it out of the car, even though he knew that he should. He lay there for God knew how long when he heard the sound of another car pulling into the lot near him. He didn’t have to look up to know that it was Jared.

He heard the engine shut off and then the door open and close, footsteps heading toward him sounding in the gravel.

"How did you know I was here?" Jensen asked, not looking at him.

"I didn’t." Came Jared’s voice. "You ok?"

Jensen scoffed. "What do you think, Jay? Your dad thinks I’m a drug addict and was going through my shit, thinking he was gonna find something."

"Jen, I’m sorry. What he did was inexcusable, and I know I can’t apologise for him, but I’m still sorry. I should have talked to him before he pulled a stunt like that."

Jensen sighed and his gaze flicked over to Jared, who looked miserable. " ’S not your fault. You didn’t know."

"I know, but he’s hurt you and he’s hurt me, and I just really want to make it up to you. I swear, he is the only one like that in my family. My brother and sister will love you."

Jensen chuckled. "I think I’m gonna hold off with any more family visits for a while, if that’s ok with you. And," he took ahold of Jared’s hand and pulled him forward. "you can start making it up to me by getting up here."

Jared grinned and moved around the front of the car and climbed up next to his lover. Jensen slid closer to him as he wrapped his arms around Jared's shoulders.

"I love you," Jared whispered, kissing the top of Jensen’s head. "And I’m sorry."

"I know you are." Jensen looked up, smiling slightly. "I love you, too." He leaned up and kissed Jared on the lips, pushing himself up as heat suddenly pooled in his stomach. Without losing contact with Jared’s mouth, Jensen maneuvered himself so that he was straddling but Jared’s lap, grinding his hips down.

Jared managed to break away for a split second, gasping for breath as he felt his cock responding to the stimulation Jensen was providing.

"Jen," Jared gasped, his eyes slipping closed. "We ca-can’t. Not here."

"Yes. Here. Now." Jensen’s mouth latched onto Jared’s neck, while his hands scrabbled at Jared’s fly. He finally got it open and was about to undo his own, but Jared’s hands beat him to it. Within moments, their erections were out and were pressed against one another, causing them to moan, mouths latching together.

Jared wrapped his hand around both their cocks, pulling on them gently, trying to make it last, but Jensen had other ideas.

Jensen pulled back from their kiss, his forehead resting on Jared’s, his breathing uneven. "Harder," he rasped, trying to move his hips. "Jay, _harder_."

Jared complied, but only slightly. He moved his hand a little faster, gripped their dicks a little more firmly, but only enough to offer a bit more friction. "You’re so hot," he moaned, looking up into Jensen’s flushed face. His pupils were blown wide, not focusing properly, his attention purely on the pleasure he was feeling.

After a few minutes, Jared couldn't stand the burn in his balls any longer and started moving his fist faster and harder, the steady slap-slap of skin on skin echoing in the cool night air around them.

Jensen started babbling, his eyes slipping closed as he came closer and closer to orgasm. "Fuck, Jay. N-not gonna last…" He bit his lip hard enough to almost pull blood.

"C’mon," Jared grunted. "C’mon, Jen. Come for me…"

Jensen gasped, head thrown back. "Oh shit, oh shit, oh shit," he ground out as his orgasm tore through him, hips thrusting back and forth desperately.

"Oh God," Jared groaned as he watched Jensen come undone, his come spilling across his hand. His back arched against the windscreen and he bit back a cry as he came, shooting against his and Jensen’s lower stomach.

The spasms waned slowly and they sagged against each other, sharing small kisses, whispering words of love.

"I guess we better go back, huh?" Jensen asked, clinging to Jared.

"Yeah," Jared nodded. "Even if it’s just to get our things. With any luck, dad’ll be grovelling to be forgiven."

"Some how, I’m thinking not."  
  
 _Yeah_ , Jared thought, holding Jensen tighter. _Me, too_.

**

When Jared and Jensen arrived back in San Antonio, Jerry was waiting for them, Sherri standing behind him, offering them a small sigh.

"Can I have a talk with you boys?" Jerry asked, eyes flashing guiltily at them.

"I'll leave you three to it," Sherri said, leaving them alone and heading into the kitchen.

"We’re just here to get our things," Jared told his father, pushing past him and heading for the stairs. He stopped when he felt a hand on his arm.

"Please, son. I owe you both an apology."

Jared glanced at Jensen, who just looked back and shrugged. "Fine." He shrugged Jerry’s hand off his arm and went into the living room, taking Jensen’s hand in his own.

Jerry followed them awkwardly, feeling as though he were on trial. He sat down and gestured for them to do so as well, and waited until they were comfortable before he started talking. "I want to apologise for the way I’ve been acting. I didn’t mean to make you feel so uncomfortable and I most definitely didn’t mean to push you away."

"But you did, Dad. You acted like a complete asshole to both of us and you went through Jensen’s things! It doesn’t matter if you’re a cop or not. He’s my boyfriend and you should trust my judgement!"

"I know, Jared. But you have to understand from my point of view. You’re my son and I would do anything I could to protect you. When I read his criminal record, I jumped to conclusions and acted before really thinking about it."

Jared stayed silent for a moment, judging whether his father meant what he said or whether his mother had put him up to this. The look in his eyes told him he was being sincere. He sighed and looked over at Jensen, whose eyes were trained on the floor. He looked back at his father and began to talk.

"Dad, if it were just me, I would forgive you, but it’s not. I’m not the only one you’ve hurt."

"I know. Jensen, I’m sorry I’ve acted this way towards you and I apologise for invading your privacy. I should not allow the cop in me to rule the father in me and I hope in time you can forgive me."

Jensen nodded slightly, finally looking up at him. "I understand why you did it," he said, his voice steady. "You’re a father and you’re only looking out for your son. Maybe you went about it the wrong way, but I like to think that I would be just as protective of my own kids."

Jared coughed, startled at Jensen’s words. "Your own kids? You want kids?"

Jensen blushed, looking down again. "Someday. Yeah."

"Oh." Jared looked away, his brain ticking over. "Cool."

Jerry lifted his hand to his mouth and grinned behind it. He could see how much these two cared for each other and he felt another stab of guilt as he thought about how he had almost pushed them away.

"Are we ok?" Jerry asked them.

Jared glanced at Jensen who looked up and nodded, smiling lightly.

"Yeah Dad, we’re ok."

Jerry breathed a sigh of relief and smiled. He stood, the other two following suit, and walked over, pulling Jared into a hug. "I love you son, and I’m so sorry."

"I know Dad, it’s ok." Jared hugged his dad back just as tight, pleased that his father had finally come through.

Jerry pulled away from Jared and stepped over to Jensen, holding out his hand. "Welcome to our family, son."

******

Jared and Jensen arrived back from Jared’s parents a few days later, and they had only a couple days off before they went back to filming and finishing the movie.

The rest of the visit with Jared family had gone really well. Jerry had made a real effort and after a little while, Jensen and he were getting on like a house on fire. They had even gone fishing together, leaving Jared to help his mom at home. Jared even started to get a little jealous of all the time his father was spending with his lover.

 

*******

As soon as they parked the car, Jensen unbuckled his seat belt, turning to face Jared, his hand sliding to cup the back of his neck.

Jared’s eyes fluttered shut when he felt his warm breath on his lips, surrendering to his touch.

The pressure of Jensen’s lips started off softly, but when his free hand rested on Jared's waist, he opened his mouth to Jensen, inviting the kiss to deepen. He groaned blissfully as Jared’s taste hit his senses after what felt like weeks. His tongue flicked in, dragging against the other.

"Fuck," Jared gasped, head thrown back as Jensen’s lips withdrew from his mouth and trailed down his neck, teeth scraping ever so slightly. His fingers were buried in Jensen's short, soft hair, holding his head there. He moaned aloud when his left hand made its way down his side and beneath his t-shirt. Jared could feel the heat rise in his cheeks, and knew they really needed to get inside, but didn’t have the willpower to stop him.

Jared shuddered in anticipation as he felt the heat of his skin travel across his navel before gliding up his chest. As Jensen bit down on his neck, his fingers found his already taut nipple and pinched it, pulling on it so that shockwaves of pleasure shot straight to his cock.

"Bed…" he gasped, desperately arching towards his touch. "Jensen…bed…"

Jensen pulled back, his own cheeks flushed, eyes wide and full of desire, and nodded.

They both scrambled out of the car, and rushed over to the front door. He tried to open the door, but with Jensen’s hands on him, he was finding it hard to concentrate.

By the time the door opened, Jared was wound so tight he thought he would snap. He could barely get his limbs to function, and Jensen was no better. His jeans were tenting out in a way which would have been funny if he wasn’t so turned on in that moment.

As soon as their door was shut, Jensen had Jared pressed up against it, his thigh in between his legs. He could feel his chest heaving against him, and suddenly felt the urge to feel more of him, to feel his skin against his own. He pulled back slightly so he could free Jared of his shirt, throwing it carelessly on the floor, followed by his own. Jared’s arms came around his neck, pulling Jensen to him, as Jensen’s fingers tangled in his hair.

Jared gasped as he felt the electricity of his touch shooting though his veins as Jensen explored his chest, pulling at his hardened nipples. His hips started to grind wildly against his lover's, desperation filling his soul.

Jensen panted as he watched his boyfriend lose control in front of him, his mouth watering at the sight. He dipped his head and caught his right nipple between his lips, sucking on it gently before his tongue snaked out and started to lave over it.

At the feel of that new sensation, Jared’s knees gave way, his erection pushing into Jensen’s leg.

"Oh, oh god!" Jared moaned, pressing his head further into his neck, "I-I’m gonna come…oh god, Jen, you’re gonna m-make me come!" Just as he was about to reach his peak, his hips moving violently against him, Jared found himself without any sort of stimulation. He opened his eyes, and saw Jensen standing before him, lips swollen, hair a mess, pants tenting.

"Not here," he told him. "Wanna be in you when I make you come."

Jared’s body shivered, his body heating further as Jensen's words hit him. He couldn’t wait any more; he pushed away from the wall and bit his bottom lip, hoping it made him look coy. Jared’s fingers slid into his own jeans and boxers, pushing them over his ass and down his thighs. He stepped out of them, and his flip flops, and stood there in front of Jensen, completely nude. He grinned slightly before he started walking to the bedroom, intent obvious.

It took all of 10 seconds for Jensen’s brain to kick into gear, and by the time he stepped into the bedroom, Jared was already in the bed, just lying there, waiting for him.

Jensen had never undressed so quickly. Soon enough, he was standing by the side of the bed, his erection curving up towards his belly, the skin flushed a deep red. Jared sat up and wrapped his hand firmly around the girth, pulling a deep groan from his chest.

"Are you gonna stand there and let me jerk you off, or are you gonna get on this bed and fuck me?" he purred, his eyes heavy-lidded with arousal.

Jensen didn’t need to be asked twice and in the next instant, he was on top of Jared, his weight pushing him down into the mattress. His lips fused with Jared‘s, his tongue stroking the other, teasing strokes that were driving them wild.

As Jared’s nails scraped down Jensen’s back, he kissed away from his mouth, across his cheek to his jaw. His tongue slipped out as he made his way down his neck to where it met his shoulder and bit down again, causing Jared’s hips to buck. Jensen slipped into the V of Jared's legs, and could feel how hard he had become; he couldn’t wait to get his mouth down there and taste him.

Jared could feel Jensen's erection pressed against his own, and he felt his desire completely take him over. He needed him inside him so bad, but when he begged, Jensen ignored him, having his own agenda.

When Jensen’s mouth reached his nipple, Jared arched against him, panting out his name in desperation. His left hand came up to pinch and pull at the neglected bud, offering him dual stimulation. He flicked his tongue over the other in rapid succession, revelling in the tiny gasps Jared was making. With one last suckling kiss, he pulled away and turned to the other, lavishing it with the same attention. Jared writhed and moaned beneath him, head thrashing as he held on tightly to the bed sheets.

Jensen grinned to himself at Jared’s whimper when he moved away, but he doubted that he would be disappointed for long. He kissed the rest of the way down his torso, his tongue briefly paying attention to his belly button, before he was face to face with Jared's rock hard cock. He rubbed his fingers against the hard shaft, loving the feel of the smooth skin.

Jared’s hands clutched desperately at the sheets when he felt Jensen touch him. His cock twitched and his hips arched up towards Jensen’s hand, desperately trying for more contact. He cried out when his fingers encircled his erection, pulling fast and hard, pre-cum pooling at the slit. Jensen’s thumb dragged over the crown, then circled round, rubbing over the sensitive bundle of nerves just under the head.

"Oh fuck, oh fuck, oh fuck…" Jared continued to pant, unable to control the babbling words that were spilling from his mouth.

Jensen slipped his finger into his mouth, coating it liberally before pushing it past the tight ring of muscle of Jared’s ass. His finger moved in and out, slowly at first then with gaining speed. He lowered his head and captured the leaking tip of Jared‘s cock with his lips, sucking on it hard, taking him deep in his mouth.

From the almost-scream that was torn from Jared’s mouth, Jensen guessed he had pressed against his prostate. He pressed in another finger as he continued to suck on Jared’s dick, stretching the tight muscle, getting him ready.

Jared felt like he was on fire. He had forgotten how good this could feel. He felt like he was beyond ready for Jensen to just take him, but at the same time, he wanted this to last.

"J-Jen…" he panted, eyes rolling up into his head as Jensen moaned around him, causing vibrations to send sparks of pleasure down into his balls. "I’m g-gonna…oh god," three of Jensen’s fingers were now inside him, massaging over his prostate all the while he continued to work over his erection. "G-gonna come…oh fuck me, fuck me, fuck me…"

Jensen could feel his muscles begin to tighten around his fingers, so to make it all the more intense for him, he lifted his free hand and pressed it against his abdomen, pushing down.

The extra pressure was all he needed and then Jared was shooting into Jensen‘s mouth, hips pumping frantically against him, cum leaking out of his Jensen’s mouth, spilling down his chin. He shuddered as the last few tremors rippled through his body, finally falling limp against the bed.

Jensen pulled away from him, and slowly kissed his way up his sweating body, enjoying the fact that he made Jared lose control like that. When Jensen was face to face with him, Jared blinked his eyes open and gave him such a beautiful smile that Jensen felt his heart skip a beat. He couldn’t quite understand why a man this amazing would want to be with him. He looked so serene lying there, his dark hair fanned out on the pillow, his face flushed with a recent orgasm.

When Jared’s hand reached down to touch him, he shook his head, moving it away. "You touch me and it’s over…I gotta be inside you baby, need to feel you." Jared nodded, so Jensen reached out to the bedside table and pulled out lube and a condom from the drawer. As quickly as he could, he slicked and sheathed himself, then he leant down to kiss Jared, lifting one of his legs over his shoulder, opening him up.

Jared felt the blunt tip of Jensen’s cock pressing against him before he pressed forward. He felt the sharp stab of pain and Jensen pasued for a second, allowing him to get used to the feeling. When he relaxed a little more, Jensen pushed in further, until he was completely inside.

"Jared," Jensen groaned, eyes closed tightly, "you feel so good…"

"Move…please, Jen…move," Jared reached up to his head and pulled him down to kiss him as he started moving, hips shifting back and forth lightly. He bit down on his lower lip in frustration, the pace not fast enough.

Jensen pulled back and smirked at his boyfriend, pulling almost all the way out before he slammed back inside him, causing him to cry out. His hair was sticking to his face, held there by sweat, but he didn’t care. All he cared about was the writhing body beneath him.

The motion of his hips was enough to stir Jared‘s cock, bringing him back to full hardness. He wrapped his fingers around himself, jerking it in time with Jensen’s thrusts. He clenched his muscles, tightening himself around Jensen, and knew it had the right effect when his lover’s hips stuttered, and he let out a deep groan.

"Uhhh," Jensen moaned, feeling his balls draw up towards his body, just moments from spurting inside Jared, moments from drowning in his own pleasure. "Ba-abe, I’m gonna come…"

He managed to balance himself on his left arm, as he reached in between their bodies, pulling Jared‘s hand away from himself and replacing it with his own. He pulled on his cock desperately, wanting to bring Jared over the edge with him .

Oh god, this was it, he was about to come. Jared’s hips picked up a notch and met Jensen thrust for thrust, ass muscles starting to tremble. Suddenly, light burst behind his closed eyelids, and he was coming, splashing hot come between their bodies.

"Love you baby, love you so much." Jensen thrust once, twice, three more times and the he, too, was coming, his orgasm ripping through him like a cresting tidal wave. He shuddered deeply, feeling Jared’s orgasm pulling his own from him. "Oh god, oh god, mmmmm….I love you…." he gasped, head buried into Jared‘s neck.

Jared’s leg slipped from Jensen’s shoulders as they came down together, clinging on to each other, as the last tremors rolled through them.

*******

Later on, when they curled together beneath the duvet, Jared turned his head and looked up at Jensen, who was dozing lightly.

"You know," he started, breaking the silence in the room. "I was thinking about our living arrangements. Once we’ve finished filming, you maybe wanna move in with me?"

Jensen looked up at Jared, eyes wide, all traces of sleep gone. "What?"

"I’m sorry, I know we haven’t been together very long, and maybe it’s all a bit rushed, but I love you and I wanna be with you…I wanna have kids with you and grow old with. I just want you." Jared looked away, blushing at his ramblings. He hated not being able to control his words sometimes.

"God, you have no idea how much I love you, Jared Padalecki. Of course I’ll move in with you. I wanna be with you, too!"

"Really?" Jared gasped, smile blossoming onto his face.

"Yes really." Jensen’s smile returned and he laughed when Jared leaned in and kissed him enthusiastically, holding onto him tightly.

Jared pulled back and rubbed his nose against Jensen’s. "I love you. I still can’t believe you’re mine."

"Believe it," Jensen whispered gently, fingers reaching up to brush Jared’s hair away from his face. "I’m yours."

Jared leaned in and kissed him again, before laying down, snuggling into his body and thinking, _yeah, you are._

Epilogue.

*Three months later*

The roar of the crowd that surrounded the red carpet was deafening, even from within the limo. Jensen bit his lip nervously, his leg bobbing up and down as he waited for their cue to step out into the waiting crowds.

Even though he had been in a boy band for years and had dealt with fans and situations similar to this, this was his first Red Carpet appearance that was for _him_. It was mind boggling that the movie had received so much attention. But then again, the leading actor was his boyfriend and he couldn’t imagine any other response.

Jared was holding his hand tightly, a smile on his face as his eyes shone with excitement. They had argued about going together or separately or whether Jared should go with Sophia, but after an hour of their voices penetrating through his alcohol hazed mind, Mike told them to _shut the fuck up and just go together._ And although it didn’t solve the argument right away, it did remind them of the issue at hand. Wrap party.

But it was eventually decided that they would go together, as they'd had a heart to heart and realised that neither of them wanted to hide their relationship. They were proud of who they were and who they were with.

Jensen’s accident those few months ago was no doubt going to be talked about tonight; the reason why the film release was behind schedule, and Jensen already knew how to deflect the question. A month or so ago, an interviewer had asked about it while Jared was there, and his boyfriend had an emotional melt down. The question had sparked one of his memories, which lead to Jared shaking and crying, that fear of nearly losing Jensen being brought to the surface. After that incident, they had requested that any questions of that circumstance not be asked, at least in Jared’s presence.

The person responsible for the accident had eventually come forward and was severely reprimanded. They were damn lucky that Jensen hadn’t taken further action.

*****

"You ready?" Jared asked, seeing the nervous look on Jensen’s face. They had just been given the green light and were about to exit the vehicle.

"As much as I ever will be," Jensen replied with a soft smile.

Jared leaned in and gave him a soft kiss before he opened the door and stepped out, standing tall amongst the flashing lights of hundreds of cameras going off. Jensen was standing beside him in a matter of moments and with one smile from him, the flashing light dimmed in comparison.

******

Jensen wanted to reach out and grab ahold of Jared as they headed up the Red Carpet. It was really exhilarating, but scary at the same time. They kept firing questions at him, and he knew he should be used to this, but truth be told, he'd _never_ gotten used to it. But, having Jared at his side was allowing him to relax and even offer a few comments.

"So, are youseeing anyone at the moment, Jared?" A plastic-looking blonde asked, obviously belonging to a teen magazine or something along those lines. There is no way any magazine of tv program with any hint of credibility would hire someone like that. "All our readers are just _dying_ to know."

"Actually," Jared said offering her a smile as he reached out to tug Jensen closer to him. "I am."

"Oh really!" Plastic-blonde said, fake smile growing. "How wonderful! And who is the lucky lady, may I ask?"

Jared glanced at Jensen who gave a slight nod. _Now or never._

"You may…and _he_ is standing right beside me." He caught Jensen’s hand with his own and smiled wider as the girl's mouth fell open and the people who had caught the exchange started buzzing, the news spreading like wildfire. The flash-bulbs picked up another notch, but they ignored them as they shared a kiss before heading inside.

******

Back at Jensen’s, now Jared’s, too, they curled up in bed together, still feeling the adrenaline from the night they had just experienced.

"Are you ok?" Jared asked, hand stroking up and down Jensen’s naked back.

"Yeah," Jensen replied, lips pressing lightly against Jared’s chest.

"You sure? You don‘t regret anything, do you?"

Jensen lifted his head and looked up and him. "Never. Nothing. I’m in this for the long haul and there is nothing that we did or said tonight that I regret, ok?"

"Yeah, ok." Jared leaned in and kissed Jensen, never being able to get enough of how good he felt and tasted.

Jensen pulled away with a soft sigh and settled back down. "I think we should go away somewhere for a while."

"You do, do you?"

"Yeah, just until the buzz dies down a bit. We could go to the Caribbean or Italy or something. And it’s not like we have anything lined up just yet…" Jensen trailed off, worrying his lips between his teeth.

"I’ve always wanted to go to Italy," Jared said after a while, smile in his voice.

Jensen grinned out into the dark, revelling in the warmth from Jared’s body. This was the start of a very long life he was planning on having with the man beside him. They were going to go away for a while and just be, then come back and make movie after movie and then, they were going to have a family, and maybe get married.

And Jensen couldn’t wait.

The End.

 


End file.
